Touch
by NoxWillow
Summary: Jack has lived 300 hundred years in isolation, until the day he meets a girl who can finally see him. But why does she have the ability to 'see' and why does it mean she must help the Guardians defeat Pitch? Will Jack finally know what it feels like to be loved and accepted by others or push them away in the process? Jack/OC
1. The Mystery of Eloni Harland

**I am extremely excited to write this as I think Jack has a lot emotionally going on, and I plan to exploit that! My main focus is defiantly characterization so read with a critical mind!**

**I am also a university student so update will be sporadic, but I'll try my best!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters except for my own**

**Song of Chapter: Hello - Evanescence**

**Chapter One: The Mystery of Eloni Harland**

Jack stood eerily still on a tree branch. This particular branch was a favorite of his: sturdy, high up the tree, and perfect for sitting. The tree itself was nestled in a quiet forest a couple kilometers away from the nearest town, a town too small to have any real hustle. Only a soft glow emanated from it in the distance. Crouching down to a sitting position, Jack let his long legs dangle beneath him. A cool wind greeted his face with familiarity, the only constant companion in this cold and silent world.

Twirling his fingers mindlessly, the snow from a nearby branch lifted up, and wrapped around Jack's fingers like a snake before falling to the ground below. _Always the same_, Jack thought. Every day had become a repetitive routine: wake up; paint the nearest city's windows with delicate patterns; blanket the roads and sidewalks with snow, undisturbed by mortal feet; blow gentile winds across fields of white. And most importantly, bring smiles to the children of the world. He was good at that. But as much joy as it brought him, it also hurt him.

He was alone. And forever would be.

Jack kicked at the empty air in frustration, angry at his isolation. How could he be charged to bring joy to children if he couldn't have joy himself? What was immortality worth if you had to spend it alone? He longed for a conversation with the kind baker in the small, simple town nearby. Or to greet the old lady who ordered a decaf coffee every morning from the local cafe. He wanted to go to the town's pond designated as the hockey rink during winter and laugh with all the local boys at a joke he told. But as invisible as the winter winds he created, he remained unseen.

It was his curse.

It used to never bother him. His first two hundred years as a winter spirit brought him freedom. No rules to abide by or expectations to live up to. He went by his own jurisdiction, never penalized for it. But come the twentieth century, something had changed. He started to notice families bonding over simple things, brothers and sisters jokingly teasing one another, and couples holding their loved one's hands only for the basic need to be close to one another.

He wanted to know that touch. To hold someone's hand he loved dearly and to never want to let go. Staring down at his pale fingers, Jack clenched them tightly as if willing another hand to appear and take his in comfort. But the night remained empty. Kicking off the branch in frustration, Jack lifted himself into the night air with no particular place in mind. _Anywhere but here_.

He caught a fast blowing wind further up in the sky and rode it for a long while. The landscape slowly changed from rural to urbanized as he neared a commercialized city close to a mountain range. The sound of traffic greeted his ears as he got close to the downtown area. The roads were slick with snow that had melted from the sun early in the day. Pedestrians picked their way through puddles, being careful not to slip and adjusted their scarves as Jack summoned a cold wind.

Landing on the sidewalk of a major road, Jack stared at the passer-byers who walked hurriedly towards their warm homes, unaware of the jealous winter spirit standing so close to them. He could feel their heat radiating off them and longed for it. Although the cold did not bother him, heat tantalized him; almost like an addictive perfume. But no matter how much he tried to bring himself close to warmth, it never settled on his skin or remained. It repelled against him like water to oil.

Running a hand through his messy, white hair, Jack let out a sigh and continued his way down the sidewalk. He dragged his staff lazily against shop windows creating complicated designs of frost as he passed when something caught his attention. It was a girl running down the street across from him. Her copper hair set her apart from the other people she ran past, grumbling at her disturbing force in the winding down city. Her green jack clung tightly to her body, a pink scarf adorning her neck. She panted heavily as she stumbled down the street, her pace too fast to keep sturdy on the ice. She was now parallel to Jack when she let out a quiet yelp as she lost her footing, landing heavily on her front.

A sickening crunch sounded as her head connected with the cement walk. The girl allowed herself a small whimper before gingerly moving to the side of the walk closest to the building. A cut had split open on the right side of her forehead, trailing a thin line of blood down the side of her face.

"Shit," she said as she brought her hand to her forehead, smearing the blood. No one else seemed compelled to help the girl. If anything she had earned a couple glares from strangers as if saying 'it's your own fault for running.'

The girl moved along the building on her hands and knees until she was by the entry door to a Starbucks. Grabbing onto the handle, she slowly hoisted herself up, wobbling a bit from her head injury. Once she had steadied herself, the girl gave a quick look behind at the street she had run down. Apparently satisfied at what she saw, the girl continued moving leaning on anything for support.

Jack stood where he was as the girl continued on, knowing there was nothing he could do to aid her. It was part of his curse. How could you aid someone when they couldn't even see you? Quickening her pace as fast as she dared, the girl pulled herself down the street but stopping suddenly when she heard a name called behind her. "Eloni Harland, Stop!" The colour drained out of her face making her white as a ghost compared to the bright red blood staining her hair and cheek.

"No, no, no," she whispered moving even faster now. "Just go away. Please go away," she huffed under her breath.

Behind her ran a tall slender figure wearing a long red jacket, straight hair reaching down to his shoulder blades. "Eloni Harland, you must come with me at once!"

The girl Jack now supposed to be Eloni turned around viscously from ahead. "Get away from me!" she yelled with vigour.

It seemed now that the other pedestrians were becoming concerned with this girl and her pursuer. People had stopped in their tracks to watch as the girl pulled herself frantically down the street. Jack tightened his fists, wishing he could knock out the bastard who was terrorizing the girl. The air seemed to drop in temperature around him as his anger rose.

"Miss, is everything alright?" an older man in his sixties asked as he approached the girl.

She looked between the old man and the one pursuing her from behind, now a couple blocks away. "No, there's nothing you can do," she breathed and pushed off the wall with more strength. The old man stood confused and frightened at the distraught girl, but was useless to her.

"Please, we can help!" the man yelled, but she was already around the corner and into an ally. Mystified, the man and the crowd who had assembled to watch the girl dispersed with sad shakes of their heads. Now fully devoted into this case with interest, Jack took off after the girl, following her into the ally.

She seemed to have lost her stamina and had fallen to her hands and knees, inching her way further into the ally. Soft sobs caught at her throat as her breathing hardened. "No, no, no," she kept mumbling over and over again. Jack cautioned his way toward her like a person would a cornered dog. Completely useless, he told himself, but it seemed wrong to do anything else. Upon reaching a dingy safety ladder at the side of the ally, the girl pulled herself up slowly, staggered and sank back to the ground.

No longer hesitant, Jack raced to her side. Whether it was from exhaustion or loss of blood, the girl had fallen into unconsciousness. Reaching out a hand to touch her swollen, bloodied face, Jack stopped himself. What was he doing? He had no part interacting with the mortal world except to dig winter's teeth into it. Before he could do anything else, Jack heard his name be called.

It was so shocking and foreign to hear it on anyone's lips; Jack reeled back from the girl and scrambled to a standing position.

"Jack Frost, back away from the girl." The figure who had chased her had finally caught up and stood tall in the entry of the ally, intimidating. "She is none of your concern. Return to whatever business you were doing before."

Shock had run its course through his body, but now astonishment held him in his place. "How... how can you... you can see me?" For a tender second, a small flame erupted in Jack's chest at the thought of being seen. Had somehow his curse been broken? Was he no longer alone in this world?

The man advanced forward, pulling out a small crimson bag from his coat pocket. A small emblem tied to the bag caught what poor lighting there was in the ally. It was a red leaf with a delicate vine wrapped around it. The symbol of the Autumn Court.

"You're not human," Jack breathed, and whatever flame of hope he had escaped with his breath.

"I am an elf of the Autumn Court, and this girl is in my custody. Be gone winter spirit. Your presence is not welcome here." Moving forward, the tall elf motioned to the unconscious girl as he spoke. His long auburn hair hung beside his perfect face, his gold eyes intense as they dared Jack to question his authority.

Removing his eyes from the elf to the girl, Jack dug his heels into the ground. "And what do you intend to do with her?"

"That is between the Lady of Autumn and the girl. Be gone spirit." The elf held out the small bag he drew earlier. Digging his left hand into it, the elf pulled out a fistful of dried leaves. Crunching them to small pieces, the elf released his grip and blew the remains to his side. As soon as the leaves left his hand, they took life of their own and swirled in a violent motion forming a portal. Stowing the bag back in his pocket, the elf knelt down and tentatively picked up the girl. "Goodbye Jack Frost." Without a further glance the elf moved into the swirling portal and was gone as quickly as he had appeared, taking the girl with him.

For two minutes, Jack stood dumbly in the ally. The girl was mortal, he was sure of that. He could always tell by their warmth. It radiated off them like an aura. But what business did she have with Lady Autumn? Collecting his thoughts, Jack picked up his staff from the ground, not realizing he had dropped it in the first place. The girl was a mystery. But there was no way of solving it. It just wasn't his business.

Jack meandered out of the ally and walked aimlessly down the street. His mind replayed the scene over and over again. Elves were attendants of the Autumn Court and invisible to mortals like Jack was. How could she have seen the elf then? If she could see the elf, did that mean she could see Jack too? The idea was overwhelming to him. Were there adults who could see Immortals? Was that why she was being chased?

Jack laughed to himself at the absurdity of it. Three hundred years he had been around. Three hundred long years and this was the first time he'd met anyone with the ability to see? It was cruel and unfair; as if the universe was playing some great cosmic joke on him. But nobody was laughing.

In some cruel way, in the midst of civilization, Jack felt more alone than ever.

**XXXX**

**And there is the first chapter! I think it turned out decent but it's up to the readers to decide that! So please R+R!**

**I have no idea when I'll next update as the life of a university student is chaotic. But this project is dear to me so I will work on it as often as I can!**

**Until next time!**


	2. The Backup

**Well, I think this chapter came rather fast! Warning now that this chapter was purely written to set up my OC character. I promise you Jack will be present in the next chapter! **

**Disclaimer: I own only my own character, everything else belongs to Dreamworks**

**Song of the Chapter: O' Sister – City and Colour**

**Chapter Two: The Backup**

The ground was cold and hard, bringing a disturbing chill through her clothes and disrupting her dream. Through her mere consciousness, Ellie tried to remember what had happened and where she was, but her recall was vague. In the far distance voices seemed to pierce through the fog she was settled in. They were rich and musical, like liquid gold spilling over her ears. It brought her an odd sense of comfort fighting against the harsh ache in her head. Of course, her head!Slowly lifting her hand to the now violent cut, Ellie flinched. Shadows of someone had been chasing her but formed in her memory. Only the harder she thought about it, the more aggressive her headache became.

"The poor girl..." Ellie heard a female voice say. The talking was getting closer or becoming clearer. She wasn't sure which. "Should we not take her to the infirmary?"

"No, Lady Autumn wishes to see her immediately," a deep voice responded. That one sounded familiar.

"But she looks so pale! And her head! You really chased her through the streets?"

"Anowin, I had orders to follow. I was told to retrieve the girl. I accomplished that. If you're so concerned about her head, go fetch a cool cloth and wipe the blood off yourself."

Ellie heard a small "humph" from the girl she supposed to be Anowin. "Fine! As if I expected anything better from you. Is that really how you really treat a guess though?" The word 'guest' seemed greatly out of place to Ellie. Since when did a host leave their company bleeding on the cold ground?

An awkward tension filled the air as Ellie realised Anowin had left, leaving her alone with the male who had chased her down. It would have been twice as awkward if he knew she were awake. Now remembering the chase and her injury, Ellie began to feel the damage. Her bones ached with exhaustion and a severe sense of nausea was churning its way in her belly. She would have emptied all the contents of her stomach on the floor but held back the gagging as another presence entered the room.

"Is she awake, Nafayeth?" A woman asked.

"Yes. She's been awake for the last five minutes." Ellie's body tensed at his blunt words. "Anowin has gone to fetch her a cloth for her face."

"Good. Bring her to me then." Before Ellie could register the woman's words, a hand gripped her left arm and pulled her off the ground none to gently.

"Up you are now," Nafayeth said hastily, forcing Ellie's eyes open to ground her bearings. A wave of dizziness threatened to pull Ellie back to the ground, but Nafayeth's grip was iron. "Stand straight girl, you are in the presence of Lady Autumn."

Before her eyes could meet that of Lady Autumn's, Ellie's attention was pulled rapidly away by her surroundings. She seemed to be in a court of some kind but like nothing she'd ever seen. Long marble pillars erupted from the ground in a large circle, each decorated with twisting vines winding their way up to the tops. There were no walls connecting the pillars but tall trees in-between, all coloured with the most vibrant red and yellow leaves. No roof united the marble either, only the open sky with the sun making its routine way behind the trees in the evening hour. A vibrant forest separated with only regal foot paths encircled the court. At the very head sat an elegant marble throne. Intricate forests carved with an expert hand stretched across the bottom while the top smoothed into graceful lines, complementing the woman who sat in it.

The woman's beauty was almost overpowering. Deep auburn locks wound their way into an intricate braid hanging down her back. Tiny leaf jewels decorated her forest green dress and her face looked as if angles had carved it; perfect alabaster skin with rose coloured lips and shocking emerald eyes.

The woman caught Ellie's sight and spread her arms in a greeting fashion. "Welcome to the Autumn Court." She spoke with an air that demanded all who listened pay close attention. Her voice seemed to echo into the woods, the leaves of the trees nearby swaying with her breath.

Nafayeth's grip on Ellie's arm pulled her attention away. It was alarmingly unwavering and tight. She could feel a strange tickling feeling begin at her fingertips and work its way up her arm. She squirmed uncomfortably and tried to pull her arm out of his hands. "Nafayeth, let go. I believe our guest can hold herself," Lady Autumn commanded, her eyes never leaving Ellie's face. Relief surged through her arm as blood came rushing back upon Nafayeth's release. Ellie flexed her fingers slowly before shaking her hand to encourage the blood. "I suppose you have many questions," Lady Autumn continued on. "But I cannot give you answers to them all. What I can tell you is why you are here now, and that is because you serve a greater purpose."

Ellie held up her hands at the woman's words, impolitely signalling her to stop. Nafayeth tensed beside her at her rude gesture, but Ellie wasn't going to let court manners stop her rising anger. "Hold on," she interrupted, now fully annoyed with the theatrics. "You kidnap me, drag me to a random forest in the middle of nowhere and tell me that it's all because I serve some greater purpose? Are you mad?" Ellie's voiced raised an octave higher at the incredibility of it all. "I've never met you, or him," she said pointing to Nafayeth, "and I'm just supposed to be cool with it? Where are we? Who are you? And PLEASE, do be a little more specific on the whole 'we kidnapped you because we need you' part."

If Lady Autumn was the least bit annoyed at Ellie's outburst, her face betrayed it. "I understand your frustration. But yelling will not accomplish anything. If you would like answers, we can discuss them where you have calmed down."

Ellie sucked in a deep breath. How was it that she was being chided for her poor behaviour by the ones who kidnapped her? Counting back from ten, Ellie released two deep breathes before mustering any good behavior she had left. "Of course. I can be calm."

Lady Autumn gave a cool smile as if she anticipated Ellie's reactions, like a predictable child. Standing up, the woman began a slow pace toward Ellie and Nafayeth. She was tall and willowy, her long graceful limbs moving across the court in only a few strides. "You are in the Autumn Court. There is no geographical location, its existence moves around the earth as life flows through a cycle. The only way to get here are through portals or magic. You are here because you have a purpose to serve in a grand and master plan. I cannot tell you what that is," the woman said cutting Ellie off before she could interrupt, "but you will be needed in due time."

Now standing only a few feet away from her, Ellie could feel a sense of raw power radiation off Lady Autumn. It was as if there was an electrical current buzzing around her. "But why me?" Ellie said. "And why kidnap me? Wouldn't a simply Facebook invite suffice?" Lady Autumn showed no sign of humour. "Or you know, kidnapping works too."

"I will admit, Nafayeth's way of summoning you was most unorthodox, but sufficient nonetheless. Tell me, Eloni. Do you know where you come from?" Lady Autumn's eye were not questioning but almost challenging.

Ellie crossed her arms annoyed with the simply challenge. "Yeah, Canada. But I hardly see how that has to do with anything."

"Oh my dear, your heritage has to do with everything. Tell me about your father and mother."

All the muscles in Ellie's body tensed. "Why? You're a stranger to me? How come I should I tell you anything?"

Bending her head forward as if to whisper in her ear, Lady Autumn said, "if you want answers, you must give them first."

Ellie scoffed, knowing she would get nowhere if she refused to talk, but hating it at the same time. "Fine, you want answers? My father was a drunken bastard who ruined everything he touched. My mother was killed by a drunk driver when I was eleven years. And just to top it off, let me tell you about my sister's suicide. How she committed it exactly a year after my mom was killed because she couldn't bear to live with our stupid father. I'm one great big fucking tragedy, aren't I? Happy now?" Ellie was panting hard, forcing herself not to lose control. Not in front of this bitch.

But Lady Autumn would bring no sympathy. "And why did your father drink?"

Beyond frustrated, Ellie threw her arms in the air. "What the hell is this? Twenty fucking questions? You want answers to his problems; you can go ask him yourself!" Ellie could feel the blood boiling in her ears. This was beyond personal. "I answered your questions, now it's your turn to answer mine!"

Lady Autumn stepped back a bit, sizing Ellie's demand and lacing her delicate fingers together. "Your father was a drunk because he couldn't have the one thing he wanted. He poisoned everything he touched because he couldn't pay for the price of his desire."

Ellie reeled back at the sudden information. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Lady Autumn narrowed her eyes and spoke clear and calmly. "You. You're the price your father couldn't pay. Tell me, dear child, did you ever wonder why he never loved your mother? Or why he treated her the way he did?

Ellie had begun shaking at some point during the conversation. It was as if a thousand ton rock had been dropped on her chest. The colours of the forest seemed to blur together as Lady Autumn's words took meaning. "I don't get it. What price? What are you talking about?" Her composure was slipping drastically.

"As the Lady of the Autumn Court I must preserve my magic and kingdom. If anything were to ever happen to me, there must always be someone to take my place."

Ellie's mind spun at the sudden change of topic. "What? You mean like a back up?"

Lady Autumn smiled as if this was the greatest thing Ellie had ever said. "Exactly. I must always have an heir waiting to take my place. Think about it Eloni! As an immortal I cannot die unless I am killed. For this reason I must always have a daughter in waiting. They are always mortal of course, as I can only reproduce with mortal men. But if they were ever to replace me, my abilities and responsibilities would transfer to them."

Ellie backed up from the intimidating woman. Her words were clear and obvious but they made no sense in Ellie's growing anxiety. "And my father-"

"Was the last man I copulated with. Eloni, I cannot maintain relationships with the mortal men who give me children. It is the price they pay for my love." Lady Autumn's words rang loudly in Ellie's ears. A bitter truth to a bitter reality.

In the openness of the court, Ellie began to feel a sense of impending claustrophobia. It was as if the air in her lungs had been violently ripped out and replaced with a dense fog not suitable for breathing. "No. No, no, no, no, no! My mother was killed in a car crash! I was at her funeral with my sister and my father. I have memories of her! Pictures of her in our house! She was real and alive and beautiful!" Her voice came out cracked and disjointed, as if breaking a month's vow of silence.

"The woman you called your mother was real. But she wasn't your mother, a least not by birth right. She was your sister's mother, yes, and your father's wife, but she was not yours."

Ellie sunk down to the floor and wiped her hands vigorously at her face, as is she could scrub all the anger and frustration away. "Do not be angry child. You are a part of something so much larger than what you knew. If anything you should be grateful." Lady Autumn crouched down to Ellie's level and outstretched her had touching Ellie's shoulder. "You are my daughter."

Ellie laughed bitterly and swatted her hand away. "Well then, _mother_. It's nice to see you too. What's it been? Like seventeen years?"

Lady Autumn stood up and smoothed her dress, satisfied at Ellie's acceptance –sarcastic or not. "It is a mere moment for an immortal."

"Glad my life's so important to you." Following in her mother's footsteps, Ellie stood up and crossed her arms, angry, hurt and confused. Her entire life had been a lie. Her father's hatred had been because of her and the woman she had called mom for years now a sad lie. Ellie was vaguely aware of Lady Autumn departing and Nafayeth talking to her. It appeared Lady Autumn had had enough to say and was giving her space and time to think. Ellie assumed the minor details would be filled in later.

Turning to the outside of the forest, Ellie began wandering away from the annoyed elf. She had no interest in what he had to say. Quite frankly, she had no interest in what anyone had to say. A dirt path stretched to the left of the throne, catching her eye. It wound itself deep into the woods, looking isolated and inviting at the same time. A perfect place to be when one needed to be alone. Ignoring the elf who kept pointing to her head, Ellie began a slow walk away into the forest. She wanted to escape the new truths and forget the old lies; to remember her mother and sister and to forget her father.

The path continued its way through the lush forest. The colour of the leaves changed as the sun spilled its last rays upon them, fighting the darkness that accompanied night. The sound of a nearby stream reached Ellie's ears before she saw it. It was humble, no wider than five feet and shallow enough to cross without wetting your knees. Small pebbles eroded by centuries covered the bank, a few weeds popping their unwanted heads from out beneath. Finding a spot near the edge, Ellie collapsed on her knees. Her headache was now beyond bearable and the stress of the last few hours weighed down on her so heavily it was overwhelming.

With what little strength she had left, Ellie peered over the water's edge and was met by a gruesome reflection. Her forehead was bloody and bruised, matching her bloodshot eyes. Cupping her dry, cracked hands in the stream, Ellie brought water to her face and began washing away the dried blood. She scrubbed vigorously, tears mixing with the red water.

Before she could regain her self-control, the tears gave way to devastating sobs. "Oh god. Oh god, oh god, oh god," she repeated in distress. She was the reason for her family's destruction. The reason her father hated everything; why he never loved his children or devoted himself fully to his wife. She was a constant reminder of the woman her had once loved, but could never have.

"Oh, sweetie! Nafayeth told me you'd be here." A feminine voice said from the trees. It was the voice of the female she had heard upon first waking up in the court. Turning around, Ellie was greeted with a petite brunette. Her long hair framed her delicate face, complementing her big brown eyes. "Let's get you cleaned up shall we? There's a cottage down the stream. I can clean your head wound there."

Ellie didn't refuse as the small elf pulled her up from the bank. "That's a good girl," she coed while pulling Ellie's left arm around her shoulders, giving her support in her utter exhaustion. "This way now."

"So now what? Where do I go from here?" Ellie asked as Anowin finished stitching her cut. The two were sitting in a meek cottage located farther down the stream. The humble abode was made out of wood, equipped with only a bed, fireplace, table and a pot above the fire for boiling. It appeared to have been made a few centuries ago and used seldom. A bucket full of bloody cloths soaking in water was placed on top of the rickety table where Anowin was working.

"While, I suppose she'll send you somewhere safe," Anowin responded, referring to Lady Autumn. "She won't tell you what she needs you for but she can't risk you getting into trouble in the meantime."

Anowin swatted Ellie's hand for the fifth time as she attempted to touch her stitches. "They need to heal Eloni. Let them. Unless you want a ghastly scar," she threatened. Ellie dropped her hand immediately.

"So where's safe? Why is here not safe? Why can't I go home?"

Anowin sighed. "There are so many dangerous things out there. Now that you know your identity, it's important to make sure the enemies don't find out tell the proper time. They'll use anything against Lady Autumn to destroy her."

Picking up a glass of water beside her on the kitchen table, Ellie took a big gulp before saying, "enemies? And no offense to Lady Autumn but she doesn't exactly exude motherly affection."

"She cares about you Ellie. There's just so much to do right now. I mean with winter coming to an end, springs only a month away-"

"Spring? I thought this was the _Autumn Court_?" Ellie said, emphasising her words using air quotes.

Anowin chuckled as she stuffed the last of the medical supplies into a brightly coloured bag. "We're called the Autumn Court because the very first Lady in charge was named Autumn. Only a few centuries later did mortals use it to refer to the one specific season. Lady Autumn goes by many names however. Gaia, Demeter, Mother Nature-"

Ellie nearly fell off her chair, threatening to reopen her wound. "Holy shit! You're telling me I'm the daughter of Mother Nature?"

"That would be correct. But really Ellie, please try not to hurt yourself. Sit still!" Before Ellie could respond with something along the lines of 'me, hurt myself? Never!' a loud rap pounded from the door. Anowin was up without so much as a sound and moved gracefully across the floor. It was eerie to Eloni how elves moved without sound, like the ghosts of nature. With the door now open, the two girls were greeted with a sour looking Nafayeth.

"Ah, I see my stalker's here," Ellie said under her breath sitting up from her chair.

Nafayeth eyed her in annoyance, apparently having picked up her snarky comment from across the room. "I can assure you I was not stalking you. I had orders. It was not my fault you ran away."

Ellie held up her hands in defence. So typical of this impudent elf. Not even an apology. "Of course, it's always my fault. Forgive me."

The elf had apparently missed her sarcasm and he nodded with a quick "thank you." Nafayeth moved further into the cottage, pulling a disgusted face at the bloody cloths. "Anyhow, I haven't come here to receive apologies. I come here bringing news from Lady Autumn. We have discussed many things while you were being tended to and we have both agreed where to keep you safe!"

Ellie clapped her hands together in anticipation, eager at the change of subject. "Hawaii? Europe? Maybe Australia?"

Nafayeth scoffed at her suggestions. "Of course not!" he chided sharply. "We're sending you to the North Pole!"

**XXXX**

**Well, I'm pretty excited to go to the North Pole. Such a coincidence that Ellie's being sent to the North Pole? Who knows?**

**Anyway, thank you for bearing with me in this purely character building chapter.**** I promise you Jack in the next one for sure! **

**Please R+R as that is what keeps writers writing! Your opinion is the best!**

**Cheers! **


	3. Touch

**Another chapter! Yay! Anyways, as promised I give you Jack! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything of the movie, it all belongs to Dreamworks. I only own my own characters.**

**Song of the Chapter: Electric Feel - MGMT**

**Chapter Three: Touch**

_One month later_

This was his first memory; a quaint pond near a simple town lined by tall, slouching trees. Jack always felt more centered here, standing in the middle of the pond. As if his purpose became more clear and solid. But it was never clear enough. Just always out of reach. A figure darted to Jack's left pulling him from his thoughts. It was little and moved swiftly between the night's shadows, almost begging for Jack to follow. Leaping from the ground he bolted after the form, winding through the trees before taking to the sky. The figure led Jack into the sleeping town nearby. He leaped from rooftop to rooftop, following its trail; but each time he came close to it, it seemed to bolt ten paces faster. Now deeply intrigued Jack sped his tempo to match. The crisp night air blew against his skin, a cool refresher to the days warming temperatures. Easter was only days away and Bunnymund would have a fit if Jack set a blazing blizzard abroad. For once, he thought, he would be nice and let spring progress without any interruptions.

The small figure veered sharply into an alley disappearing from Jack's sight. Touching down to the street, Jack continued his pursuit on foot, impervious to the cool cement beneath his feet.

"Hello mate, been a long time," a gruff voice called from the shadows. "Blizzard of 68' I believe? Easter Sunday wasn't it?"

Jack leaned back on his staff at the entrance of the alley and let out a low chuckle. "You're not still mad about that, are ya?" he called lazily as Bunnymund stepped out into the light.

The giant rabbit glowered down at the winter sprite, apparently having found no peace after forty-four years. "Yes. But this is about something else. Fellas!"

Before Jack could inquire who these fellows were, a ruff hand grabbed him from behind and yanked him backwards. "Hey!" but any fight was a lost cause as Jack was stuffed violently into a sack. He scratched viciously at the fabric, trying to claw his way out before the sack took a violent turn. "Oooahhhh," Jack cried unintelligently as the sack landed heavily on hard floor. Jack swore the bunny would pay for the bruises forming on his backside. Eventually finding the opening, Jack peeked cautiously through and was greeted with the most unexpected sight.

"There he is! Jack Frost!" grumbled the one and only Santa Claus.

Pushing the sack off his head, Jack sucked in a deep breath. Before him stood the big four; Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and the Sandman, all in one room. "Santa, wow."

"I hope the Yetis treated you well!" the big jolly man said pointing to the large, furry beasts now standing behind Jack.

Shoving his way completely out of the sack, Jack stood up to full height and flipped his staff expertly to his shoulder. He gave himself a quick moment to take in the sight of his surroundings, guessing he must be at the legendary North Pole. The room was incredibly large with a giant globe situated at the center. Tiny lights peppered the surface, twinkling like stars in the atmosphere. This was the famous workshop he had dreamed about for years.

Jack collected himself so as not to show his excitement. How many years had he been trying to break into this place? The last two centuries for sure. He needed to appear calm and collected; cool even. "Yeah, I love being shoved in a sack and tossed though a magic portal."

Santa placed his hands on his hips in approval. "Good! That was my idea."

"So," Jack said turning around and frosting the nearest elf he could find. "The Big Four all together. What did I do that was so bad?"

Bunnymund who stood leaning against a grand fireplace behind Santa crossed his arm. "Where to begin?"

"Now, now boys. Let's keep it together," Tooth said from Santa's left. Her wings fluttered frantically as she hovered in the air trying to keep the peace. She smiled quickly at Jack, giving him a silent greeting. Sandy waved sleepily from Santa's right, trying to fight off an impending nap.

Santa boomed forward and outstretched his massive hand, clapping Jack on the back. "We need your help, as guardian."

Jack furrowed his eyes and stepped back, earning him disapproving looks from the other three. Ignoring them, Jack leaped on top of a nearby desk and said, "As a guardian? You don't want me. You're all work and deadlines, and I'm snowballs and fun times. I'm not a guardian." Jack slumped down into a sitting position at his last words.

Zipping over to him, Tooth reached out and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Jack, I don't think you understand what it is we do." Flying over to the globe, Tooth pointed to the tiny glowing lights. "Each of those lights is a child-"

"And good or bad, knotty or nice, we protect them," Santa finished for her, staring at the globe with deep devotion and protection in his eyes.

Jack laughed nervously at the sudden shift in intensity. "No, no. No offense," he said gazing at the lights.

Bunnymund was the first one to take offense however. "How... how... how is that not offensive? I mean what's this clown know about bringing joy to children anyway?"

"Uh, you ever hear of a snow day? I know it's no hardboiled egg but kids like what I do," Jack said with confidence, daring the bunny to challenge him.

Bunnymund stood up to his full height, now thoroughly agitated by Jack's narcissistic behaviour. "And none of them believe in you, do they?"

Jack narrowed his eyes at the rabbit, gripping his staff tighter. He wished he could shove Bunnymund's words back in his mouth, but the truth rang loud and clear. Before he had the chance to retort however, a large crashing sound echoed from across the giant room.

"Oh shit, Laffy I'm so sorry! I know you just painted those blue!" It was a female voice, ringing off the room's large walls. "I swear I'll help you repaint them! I just need to talk to Uncle Nick quickly."

The sound of an annoyed Yetis cried out as a sheepish looking girl rounded the corner. She was medium height, with soft curly auburn hair loosely braided down her back. Bright brown eyes shone with concern as she apologized once again to the yeti named Laffy for knocking over his freshly painted toys. Jack could feel the heat radiating off her skin from where he stood, a mortal in Santa's workshop, how odd.

Slouching against his staff, Jack sized the girl up. She was clad in a large knitted green sweater, the sleeves and bottom complimented with purple zigzags. Her black leggings clung tightly to her legs, flattered her healthy figure. Walking toward Santa, the girl gave a quick hello in due respect to the others, each appearing to know her already. She presented a small toy to Santa, looking embarrassed for interrupting them. Of course she couldn't see Jack. She was mortal. Jack laughed bitterly to himself at the thought. It never changed.

"I know this is a bad time -super bad time even- but we need to know whether to continue making these toys or scratch them completely."

The girl tugged at Jack's memory as Santa took the toy from her hand, but he couldn't place her. So instead he asked, "Who's the carrot top?"

The girl froze in her place for a quick beat before turning around to face Jack. "Excuse me? That's a little rude." Everyone in the room froze at her outburst, completely surprised. "Is that the first thing you do when you meet someone? Pick on their appearance? Well in that case, what's your excuse? You look like you haven't stepped outside in the last ten years. And while we're at it, you've gone prematurely white," she huffed out angrily.

Jack was left absolutely speechless. This girl could not only hear him, but see him too! It took nearly all his willpower to not fall over in shock.

"Oh Ellie, this is Jack Frost," Tooth replied nervously, the first to break the silence. The four men in the room each had their mouths hanging open in astonishment.

"But how...?" Bunnymund questioned, pointing a finger between Ellie and Jack as if he could draw out an explanation.

Ellie huffed, apparently none too pleased at the attention. "Well, nobody told me Jack Frost was so rude."

Santa handed Ellie back the toy slowly, hindered his shock. Evidently he hadn't anticipated this either. "Ah, yes. Keep them. But you... and him? You see him?" the man stumbled, pointing at Jack.

Jack looked openly at the girl, a whirl of emotions twisting through his head. A girl who could see him! Someone could see him! He nearly bounded over to her and planted a huge, grateful kiss on her check. Nearly. "I don't get what the big deal is, except for the fact that Jack Frost has a thing against redheads. If you'll excuse me though, I need to get back to work." Giving Jack one last look of disapproval, Ellie turned on her heels and sulked back the way she came.

Bunnymund hopped over to Jack and clapped him on the back in approval. "Good job mate. You finally meet a girl after 300 years of isolation and the first thing you do is piss her off. Done like a true jack ass. No pun intended."

Jack stared stupidly from the direction where Ellie had left. He wanted so desperately to chase after her, and do what? Talk to her? Ask her questions? Feel the warmth radiate off her skin? If she could see him, did that mean she could feel him too? Would he finally be able to touch a piece of humanity that had eluded him for 300 years?

Santa set the toy down on a table to his right and turned to face the others. "Well, I think that is enough for one day. We talk more tomorrow. Everybody go get some rest." The three other guardians nodded their heads and quietly removed themselves to their designated rooms. Santa turned his attention to Jack then.

"Who is she?" Jack whispered, looking desperately into the man's face for answers.

Santa sucked in his breath and crossed his heavily inked arms. Leaning his broad figure against the table, he answered, "She is mortal yes, but ordinary no. She is daughter of Lady Autumn and has been trusted to my protection."

Jack clenched his fist and released it. "She's the backup?" Santa nodded tersely. "But I thought they still followed mortal laws, that they only see what normal humans do?"

"She is special. It happens every so often that one of Lady Autumn's daughters is gifted. With what, no one knows. It differs from girl to girl," Santa replied.

"So if she can see me, can she touch me? Or will she just go through me like all other mortals do?" This was the question burning in Jack's chest. The one he longed to know the answer to.

Santa gave Jack a sad smile. "I don't know Jack."

"But why is she here then, under your protection?"

Santa's face brightened at Jack's question. "That, I have answer too! Her identity is important to keep secret Jack. Many terrible evils would use her against Lady Autumn in times like these. And I have feeling in my gut," he said as he patted his belly, "that she has big part to play in coming events. Just like you. So, she's been working here in my shop for last month. Very helpful, always keeping little elves in order. And she has good eye for detail... although very klutzy," Santa added as an afterthought.

Jack twirled his staff around mindlessly in his hands, deep in thought. The girl pulled violently at his memory until it finally came to him. "One month ago. I was in Canada one month ago and I saw her. She was being chased when she fell down, cut her head open," Jack said touching his forehead as if he could feel the pain himself. The memory returned at full blast as he recalled the girl hurrying down the slippery street.

"Ah yes, Lady Autumn mentioned your presence. So you already know her!" Santa cried out delightedly. "Now you must go talk to her!" Giving Jack a solid shove on the back, Santa propelled him around the globe and down a flight of stairs to a lower level.

Yetis worked devotedly on toys at long work benches stationed throughout the shop. The toys ranged from delicate dolls to colourful spaceship sets and everything in between. Throughout the chaos, a light scent of cinnamon wafted through the air as Santa led Jack through a doorway into a cozy kitchen. Elves worked dedicatedly on batches of cookies by forming a conveyor belt line. Each elf was designated to a specific task such as making the dough, rolling them into balls, and placing them on the cookie sheet. At the head of the table Ellie stood wearing a blue and white striped apron. Her hands were busy mixing cookie dough in a wooden bowl, a smear of flour on her cheek.

"Hey Carl, no eating the dough until it's cooked! Remember the last time? You made yourself sick and we had to clean up the mess," Ellie ordered to a rebel elf halfway down the line. "I'm cutting you off." The elf humped, upset at being caught and stormed out of the room, not before pushing a chair over. "He's always so temperamental," Ellie huff under her breath, completely unaware of Jack and Santa's presence.

Santa cleared his throat loudly earning everyone's attention in the room. Ellie startled and almost dropped the spoon in her hand. Setting the bowl down with the spoon safely on the counter, Ellie took off her apron. She threw it lazily on a separate counter before wiping her hands on a towel. Making her way over to the two immortals, Ellie nodded a quick hello. "Ellie, let me properly introduce you to Jack Frost," Santa's voice boomed.

The girl eyed Jack with suspicion before extending her hand. "Hello Jack Frost."

Jack stared at her hand as if it were foreign. The last 300 years he had never been able to make skin to skin contact with a mortal. It was part of his curse. The warmth coming off of her was subtle, evidence of her mortality opposed to his immortal coldness. Exchanging the staff in his right hand to his left, Jack sucked in a breath as he reached out. Ellie closed the distance by grabbing his hand and giving it a firm shake.

Quickly Ellie let go of his hand with a gasp. "You're so cold," she said looking from her hand to his. The coldness took a second to leave her skin where he had touched her.

Jack turned his hand over, palm up, and stared at it before looking up to Ellie. "And you're so warm."

Santa chuckled deep in his belly at the exchange, satisfied with how things were turning out. "Good, good. I leave you two alone. Bring me plate of cookies when you're done," he said in good jest before leaving the room.

Ellie folded her arms self-consciously at Santa's departure, not really sure why she was feeling suddenly so awkward. "Well, I should get back to the cookies. If I don't monitor the elves, they'll eat the dough before it even makes it to the oven."

Jack breathed slowly, cherishing the warm feeling slowly dissolving away on his hand. "Yeah, of course." Ellie gave him a quick nod goodbye before returning to her spot on the conveyor belt line. Smiling to himself as he departed from the room, Jack felt thoroughly excited that he had touched the hand of a human. It was ridiculously sweet after 300 years of no contact.

Jack gently closed the kitchen door but not before stealing one last glace at Ellie. "You be careful around her," a voice called to from a few feet away, pulling Jack out of his excitement. Bunnymund pushed himself off the wall he was leaning against, swinging his boomerang expertly and no less threateningly.

Jack crossed his arms over his chest, annoyed at the inevitable jibe. Could he not have on moment of happiness before someone ruined it? "Why? I'm not going to do anything to her."

Bunnymund moved so close to Jack, their noses were practically touching. He could feel the rabbit breathing heavily down his neck, a warning on his tongue. "I know you Jack. You're trouble. And that girl's been through a lot. I don't want you ruining her like you do everything you touch."

Jack straightened to his full height, the air around him dropping a few degrees. "I would never hurt an innocent," he replied coolly.

Bunnymund leaned back, his eyes narrowed in doubt. "Mark my words Frost: you hurt her and you answer to me. Got it?"

"Whatever, Kangaroo. Like I'd ever answer to you. I'm not going to hurt her so get off your little pedestal of righteousness," Jack sneered before pushing past him.

Bunnymund gripped his boomerang tightly at the word 'kangaroo' but let it slide. He'd made his point, and he'd managed to piss off Jack at the same time. His job here was done. "Pretentious bastard," he mumbled under his breath before hopping away.

Jack continued to walk angrily down the hall, turning around random corners and leaving a trail of frost beneath his feet. Bunnymund must've had an Easter egg shoved far up his ass if he thought Jack would hurt anyone. But before he could plot to seek revenge on the rabbit, a tiny hand reached up and pulled gently on Jack's pant leg. Jack turned around to find an elf looking eagerly up at him.

"What do you want?" he mumbled, irritated.

"Your room, your room. I shows you to your room!" the elf squeaked pointing down the hall. Jack sighed before patting the elf on the head... or hat. He wasn't really sure where their heads started or ended.

"Lead the way little man."

The elf scrunched his tiny face in disapproval. "My names is Tony."

Jack held back a chuckle at the elf named Tony. "Alright then, _Tony_. Show me the way."

The elf clapped his hands as if hearing his name was the best thing that had ever happened to him. "This way, this way!" Extending his hand expectantly to Jack, the frost sprite was forced to lean over at a dangerous angle to grab tiny hand. Tony held on tightly to Jack's right hand pointer finger as he dragged him down the hallway and took a sharp turn to the left. They followed a corridor of identical looking doors before stopping at one at the end of the hallway.

"This is you, this is you!" the elf chirped before sprinting away as fast as his tiny legs would carry him. Jack called out a quick thank you before chuckling at Tony the elf and his enthusiasm.

Opening the heavy wooden door, Jack was greeted with a cozy bedroom equipped with a lush bed, roaring fireplace, chair, and side table. The walls were made of logs giving the room a rustic feel with a handmade quilt covering the bed, waiting patiently to be slept in.

_This will do_, Jack thought contently as he threw his stick on the large chair and plumped himself in front of the fire. He recalled the day's major events, considering what path it would take him down. It sure wouldn't be the same anymore, Jack thought as he stared down at his hand, trying to remember the feeling of her skin on his.

**XXXX**

**Well I am pleasantly pleased at how this chapter turned out. Let me know what you think! Seriously, review, review, review ! Haha anyways, let me know if you guys appreciated the songs of the chapters or not. They're meant to be listened to during the chapter as I think they help set the mood! Kind of like a movie with a killer score. It changes everything!**

**Adios!**


	4. Secrets and Porridge in the Morning

**Finally, another chapter out! This week has been crazy with classes coming to an end and finals beginning soon! But I hope everyone has seen the movie at least twice. I have haha. It's a nice distraction form school.**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OC's, everything else belongs to DreamWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: Headlock – Imogen Heap**

**Chapter Four: Secrets and Porridge in the Morning **

Ellie sat at the kitchen table. It was large, wooden and would give you a splinter if you weren't careful. She pushed the oatmeal around in her bowl not really caring for it. Last night had proved to be eventful with the summoning of the Guardians and their special guest Jack Frost. She turned her hand over, remembering the feeling of his cool touch on her skin. Had she really expected anything else? The boy looked like a walking popsicle.

Bringing a spoonful of the now room temperature porridge, Ellie swallowed before deciding to add brow sugar to it. "I hope you floss your teeth!" Tooth said as she fluttered into the kitchen, joining Ellie at the table. "Brown sugar is terrible for your teeth."

Ellie laughed and the typical response and shoved another bite into her mouth. "Every day, twice a day!" she said with a mouthful.

"Really?" Tooth asked clapping her hands together. Her feathers ruffed up in excitement, showcasing every spectrum of colour.

"Well... sometimes," Ellie answered honestly after swallowing. "I mean, there are just those days... and they happen so often... it's hard to stay on top of it!" Ellie defended herself from the look Tooth was giving her.

"Well, if you get a cavity, I get to say 'I told you so'."

Ellie considered Tooth's words before nodding in agreement. "Deal."

Picking up an apple from a wicker basket on the table, Tooth shined it on her shoulder before taking a large bite. "So how do you like Jack?" she said with a mouthful.

Ellie stopped the spoon that was on its track to her mouth. "Uh... he seems okay."In all honesty, she hadn't really thought of him that much aside from this morning. She tended not to linger on the bad-mannered boys of the world.

"He's cute," Tooth said while examining her apple.

"I guess," Ellie answered slowly, at a loss of what to say. _Cute but rude_.

Tooth swung her seat around to directly face Ellie, not giving her a route to escape. "I know he can seem a little full of himself sometimes, but he's a good guy. You just have to give him a chance." Tooth seemed all too eager to sell Jack's personality to Ellie.

Setting her spoon down, the girl folded her hands on the table slowly. It was either fold them together or tap them uncomfortably on the counter. "Well... I mean... I just met him. I don't know anything about him."

Tooth grinned wide showing her pearl white teeth, every dentists dream smile. "It's so obvious then!" the fairy said coming to some kind of solution.

"Completely obvious," Ellie muttered under her breath, then deciding to shovel another mouthful of porridge into her mouth.

Tooth flew over to the girl and grabbed her hands. Ellie could feel the excitement radiating off her like a child on Christmas morning. Were fairies this happy all the time? Tinkerbell seemed to have an attitude. "You have to talk to him. Get to know him!"

Ellie stared down at the fairy's tiny fingers holding her own. "Right, uh... can I ask you something?"

"Of course sweetie!"

"Why?" she drew out slowly. After last night, she didn't really feel like becoming besties with the frost sprite. No hair braiding slumber parties for them.

Tooth laughed as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Sweetie, you know all us Guardians personally. But if we're going to work together, we need to all be comfortable around each other. And let's face it. You and Jack didn't get off to a great start. You know, with the whole insulting your hair thing," Tooth said as she picked up a strand of Ellie's curls. "And you have such lovely locks too!"

Ellie self-consciously began twisting a strand before catching herself and tucking it behind her ear. "Thank you but- wait what? What do you mean working _together_? I thought I was here under Uncle Nick's protection."

Tooth bit her lip nervously before squeaking out in a high voice, "Whoops, I've said too much! Anyways enjoy your breakfast and floss, floss, floss!"

Before Ellie could pester more out of her, Tooth zipped out of the room leaving Ellie to her cold porridge. "Lovely. Just lovely. Nothing like secrets and porridge in the morning." Stuffing the last bite into her mouth, Ellie jumped off her chair and dumped her dishes in the sink. She made her way out of the kitchen pondering Tooth's words. She managed to get five steps before a tiny voice called out to her.

"Loni, Loni. I found her!" Ellie turned around to find Tony running down the hallway, Jack trailing in his wake. Speak of the devil.

It appeared the frost sprite had just gotten out of bed before being rushed by the elf. His hair stuck out in odd directions, the bags under his eyes more prominent against his snow white skin. He rubbed at them, trying to squeeze the remaining traces of sleep out of his eyes. He held onto his staff lazily, dragging it behind him as he and the elf approached.

"Tony, my man. What can I do you for?" Ellie asked while kneeling down to give the elf a hug. The first time she had ever hugged an elf had been extremely awkward due to their size. But over the last month she had perfected it to an art. She purposely ignored Jack.

Tony jingled from foot to foot. His trademark jingle dance meant he had news. "Santa gives me important thing to tell you!" he said now hopping exuberantly on the spot. "He saids to tell you to give Jack tour. Tour of North Pole!"

Ellie mentally slapped herself at her luck. "Of course Tony. You tell Santa message received loud and clear." _But I ain't happy about it_. The memory of his rude comment yesterday replayed itself over in her mind. Looking the boy up and down, Ellie waited for another snide remark but the boy appeared civil. Maybe she had judged to quickly? Ellie folded her arms across her chest over her indigo knitted sweater. Without the rude behaviour, Jack seemed calm and neutral, his messy white hair and relaxed smile making her nervous. She couldn't predict what he would do next. Damn boy.

Tony turned in a circle once before bowing to Ellie, his bell jingling loudly. "Thank yous Loni!" Without another word or dance move, the elf bolted down the hall singing a terribly out of tune Call Me Maybe.

Ellie looked after the retreating elf, unsure of what to do. She didn't know how to act around Jack. He was so different from any boy she'd ever met. She wasn't even sure she could classify him as a boy. Immortals didn't age, but that didn't mean they wouldn't mature mentally. Ellie stopped herself midway through her mental rant. Jack seemed to be waiting for her to do something. Biting her lip, Ellie gave the most awkward hello she thought she was possible of.

Jack seemed to have recovered from his early morning wakeup and was staring curiously down the hall after the elf. All thoughts of sleep were wiped from his mind at the prospect of a tour.

"Uh... morning," Ellie said with an awkward wave.

Jack turned his attention back to the girl, his curiosity spiked. Not only was he getting a tour of the North Pole, but he was getting a tour from a mortal who could both see _and_ touch him. How the odds seemed to be ever in his favour for once. "Morning," he replied, enjoying his third conversation with a human. Ellie bit her lip for a second time, seeming to forget what Tony had asked her to do. She stood for a moment too long, twisting her fingers together uneasily. "The tour?" Jack said, coming to her aid.

"Ah, yes! The Tour!" Ellie said way too eagerly for the morning hour. "I will take you on a tour." Ellie began walking down the hallway, spilling any information about the workshop she could think of. Jack matched her step and walked side by side with her. He relished in the heat coming off her skin, sorely tempted to grab Ellie's hand and feel the warmth mix with his cold. But he refrained himself and concentrated his attention on Ellie's current choice of topic: the Yetis eating habits.

Jack remained polite, only asking questions at the appropriate times and occasionally complementing the fine architecture of the building. But a nagging feeling pulled at the back of his mind. He still felt terribly guilty about his comment yesterday and hadn't had the chance to apologize. "Ellie?" The girl looked at him with interest, not despise. Good, that meant she didn't completely loathe him. "I wanted to apologize about last night. I wasn't expecting you to see me. At all. Mortals never do. So when I called you a carrot top, I didn't know you could hear me. And I didn't mean it offensively either." The concern in Jack's eyes showed his distress.

Ellie took a second to think about his words before slowly accepting his apology. "Thank you Jack. Don't worry about it, I guess. I've been called worse in reference to my hair. You kinda get used to it after awhile."

Jack nodded, wondering how long awhile was. Time was measured so differently when you lived forever. "So, where to?"

Ellie stopped for a second to think. "Well, you've been to the kitchen and you've seen the main work room. How about the barn? I promised Dasher I would bring him some carrots yesterday and I never did. He's probably angry at me now."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Reindeers get mad?"

"Oh they're very temperamental," Ellie said with great seriousness. "If you're not careful, they'll bite you. And trust me when I say that hurts like a bitch."

Jack laughed at the expression on Ellie's face. Her nose was scrunched up in some awful memory of getting bitten. At least she seemed to become more relaxed as the tour went on. All her anger melted away and slowly being replaced by enthusiasm. "Lead the way," Jack said outstretching his arm, indicating her to guide.

As the two walked toward the barn, Jack became fully appreciative of just how big the North Pole was. It seemed each hallway lead into another which lead into another. All the rooms had bronze plates above the doors labeling them as the 'Electronics Room' or 'Doll Room'. There seemed to be a room for every kind of toy made these days. There were also no shortages of elves as they sprinted down the hallway, scurrying under Jack and Ellie's feet while singing out of tune 80's pop music. The Yetis waved politely to Ellie while pounding their fists together aggressively at Jack. It seemed they hadn't forgiven him for trying to break in all those years.

Ellie turned sharply around a left corner which opened up to a large hallway. A massive, intricate wooden door stood guarding the exit to the outside at the end. "Oh shit. Forgot a jacket," Ellie mumbled looking annoyed with herself. "Alright, the barn's just a little ways outside of this door. I say we make a run for it."

Jack held out his arms and shrugged. "The cold doesn't really bother me."

Ellie eyed him for a moment with _jealousy_? Jack wasn't too sure. "Rub it in, won't you? Well, you can walk then. I'm making a run for it." Pulling down the sleeves of her sweater, Ellie hopped on the spot for a moment while shaking her hands - much like a runner would before a race.

"I think you'll be fine," Jack said with a chuckle in his voice.

Ellie turned around, holding up a hand to stop him of his apparent ignorance. "Listen Jack. I know you've spent the last however many years immune to the cold, but it's the frickin North Pole out there. On a good day, it's -40 degrees Celsius. That's enough to give a person frostbite in under ten minutes." Ellie saw the look of shame and embarrassment cross Jack's face. "Oh no, Jack! I didn't mean you give people frostbite! It just happens! We're human!" That comment hurt. He knew she didn't mean it intentionally but it seemed to be one more thing separating him from his connection to humanity. "Ah, okay look," Ellie gasped, trying to make sense of what she was saying. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm a freak of nature too. Well... I'm not saying that you're a freak of nature. I was actually born to Mother Nature. How weird is that? I mean there's all kind of weird things going on in the world, right?" Ellie babbled on uncontrollably, throwing her hands in the air.

Jack sighed. There was always something reminding him of his curse. "Of course. Tons of weird things."

Ellie looked to be on the verge of slapping herself before she regained her composure. "So, the reindeer! We should go see them now." Turning away from Jack, Ellie headed toward the door at an alarmingly fast pace. Jack swore he heard her mutter, "Idiot. I'm such an idiot," before she pushed the door open and walked into a mild snowstorm.

Jack followed suit, twirling his stick around in his hand and propping it against his shoulder. Upon exiting the building, a cold harsh wind greeted his face. Naturally, the wind felt good against his skin, but Ellie was already shivering violently as she closed the door behind him.

"Th-th-this way," she spat out between chattering teeth. Jack followed the shivering girl as she raced across the snow. The large expanse of the Arctic stretched out to Jack's right while his left was met with the side of a mountain. Unusual in the Arctic, he thought. He ordered the wind to propel himself on the slippery ground, easily matching Ellie's pace. Her hair mixed wildly with the snow as they progressed; waves of copper in a sea of white. Jack took pity on her inability to walk in a mild snowstorm as she slipped for a second time, cursing under her breath. Commanding the snow to stop, Jack brought temporary relief to their spot on the mountain. Ellie halted at the sudden change in weather.

"Relax," Jack said as he passed her by. "It's just me."

Ellie narrowed her eyes before spitting out, "Impressive... and unnatural," then continued on her way. Jack chuckled to himself as he fell back into step with her. They continued down the sloping path for another two minutes before Ellie let out a great sigh. "Good god! I thought we'd never get there!"

"We've only been outside for three minutes tops," Jack responded as they approached a great barn. The walls stood twenty feet high, crafted out of intricately carved wood. A slanted roof joined at the top in a tent inspired style.

Ellie kicked her shift into high gear and was gunning for the door. "Tell that to all my frozen digits!" she yelled from behind her as she squeezed between the two great entrance doors. Jack stopped where he was and inspected his own digits; each one permanently pale and eternally cold. Looks like they had something in common.

Ellie popped her head out from inside the barn. "Hey Frost, you coming or not?"

Jack stuffed his pale hand into his pocket. "Yeah. Sorry, I was just admiring the architecture."

"Well hurry up then. I don't want to let all the cold air in."

Twirling his stick around once in Jedi fashion, Jack shined Ellie one of his notorious smirks. "Wouldn't want that, would we?"

Ellie shook her head and propped the door open wide enough for jack to pass through. "I was warned about your ego."

"And?"

"You didn't disappoint."

Once fully inside, Jack leaned casually on his staff as Ellie shut the door behind him. "Good to know I still maintain my charm then."

"Whatever you say Frost." Jack let her comment slide as he took in the barn. A warm glow emitted from lanterns, each hung periodically around the massive room. Wide wooden stalls were placed side by side, each occupied with a temperamental reindeer. They huffed and panted at the two new bodies, eager for a treat.

"Where's Rudolph?" Jack asked as he counted only eight heads, running through all the names in his mind.

"Rudolph?" Ellie snorted as she hulled two buckets of oats from a storage cupboard. "Be serious Jack. How ridiculous would a reindeer with a glowing, red nose be?"

Ellie shoved one of the buckets into Jack's arms. The weight was surprisingly heavy. "There's a whole Christmas carol dedicated to him," Jack replied defensively.

"A child's tale. What parents tell their kids to make them feel better about being misfits. Now hop to it. You take the ones on the left. I got the right," Ellie commanded. Swinging her bucket over to a stall labelled 'Comet', Ellie dug her hand into the oats and brought a fistful to the awaiting reindeer. Comet licked her hand greedily, not leaving a single oat behind.

"That's gross," Jack said pointing to her now slobbered on hand. Ellie looked at Jack, then to the reindeer beside him before looking back to Jack. She raised an eyebrow as if to challenge him. Jack scrunched up his face, already regretting his action. But pride would not let him be a coward. Placing his staff against a wall full of grooming supplies, Jack mimicked Ellie and braced himself for the slobber to come. The reindeer labelled Donner stood stubbornly where he was, refusing to accept Jack's oats. Jack coaxed the deer, throwing a bit into the stall, but Donner wouldn't budge. "I think this one's broken," Jack mumbled, dumping the oats back in the bucket.

Ellie - who was already on her third reindeer - stopped where she was and headed to Jack's side. She stood for a moment considering the deer. Donner huffed and panted at the hay beneath his hooves. "Well, it's not him. It's you. He doesn't like you."

Jack narrowed his eyes, staring down the deer. "I see. So this is how it is," Jack said propping his elbow on the stall. "Looks like we have some differences to work out." Ellie snickered from behind, enjoying the showdown. Jack smiled, her behaviour motivating him. "So why don't we settle this, man to... deer," Jack said trying to find the best diction. Donner pawed the ground, understanding his words and ready for a fight.

"Okay! Okay! Let's not get too violent here. Now Jack, Donner would hand your ass to you on a silver platter. So don't antagonize him. Or any of the other animals in fact," Ellie said in between giggles. She tugged Jack away from the stall, her hands wrapping around his right arm to do so. The heat of her skin penetrated his sweater, sending a wave of warmth through his arm. Oh how he loved that feeling. It was so foreign and enticing.

Ellie let go quickly at the sudden chill running up her hands. She tucked them quickly into her sweater pockets, trying not to look embarrassed. Apparently the feeling was foreign to her too. Jack ran a hand through his hair and sucked in a breath. "Maybe I'll try Blitzen," he spoke quickly, trying to diffuse the awkwardness.

Ellie muttered a quick "Sure," and returned to the reindeer she had been previously feeding. Jack sighed, annoyed that the sweet moment had been ruined. _All part of the curse_, he acrimoniously thought to himself. But before he could reach again into the oats bucket, the barn doors swung open violently.

Santa stood in the entrance way looking as always pleased as punch. He threw his arms in the air and let out a grand chuckle. "Ah good, good. You feed reindeer together. But no more!" he said as he shut the doors behind him. "We have very important thing to do!"

Ellie set the bucket down she was hauling to Vixen's stall, her expression a mix of surprise and confusion. Jack felt no different. "What thing?" she asked cautiously.

Santa beckoned the two toward him with a massive hand. They approached slowly with uncertainty. "You need to know how to protect yourself from danger, no?" he asked, jabbing a finger in Ellie's direction.

"Yes?" she replied uncertainly, not liking where this was going. Santa laughed and clapped the two on the shoulders.

"Good. It is agreed then. You will learn how to fight!" Jack noticed the size of Ellie's eyes grow twice in diameter. He didn't blame her.

She laughed nervously. "Very funny Uncle Nick."

Santa shook his head while waving a sausage like finger at the girl. "No, no, no. I'm serious. You play important part to come. Just like Jack. So you need to protect yourself. You need to know how to fight. That is secret! You learn to fight!" He said this as if he were telling her she was going on an all expense paid vacation; too much excitement for such a danger proposition. "Now, you come to weapons room and we train you. Jack come too. You and him help each other." He said moving his finger between the two of them. Ellie seemed to be at a loss of words.

Before Santa could say anything else, Jack interrupted, "Wait. There's a weapons room in the North Pole?"

Santa leaned back and furrowed his eyes. "Of course. How do you think we fight? With rag dolls and choo-choo trains?" Santa laughed loudly at his joke before grabbing Ellie and Jack by the shoulder and steering them out of the barn. "Now hop, hop, hop along like bunnies and to the weapons room we go!"

**XXXXX**

**Ooooh training! That should be fun. I want to quickly say thanks to all whom favorited and reviewed! Makes the writing worthwhile as each chapter has so much effort put into it!**

**Have a good weekend!**


	5. Five Minutes

**Alright, one more chapter for all you kiddies! Enjoy! And Leave a review at the end!**

**Disclaimer: I own only my own characters, everything else belongs to DreamWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: Master & a Hound - Gregory Alan Isakov**

**Chapter Five: Five Minutes was all She Had**

"He's asking for a death wish."

"You'll be fine."

"I've never murdered anyone in my life."

"Don't start now."

"Something's just can't be helped. Especially when you put a weapon in my hand. Definitely if it's a sword. This has disaster written all over it."

Ellie held a broad sword in her hand; the weight unfamiliar and foreign. She tried to lift it up and thrust forward, but the sword hung limply to her side, heavy.

"Well, it doesn't seem that deadly if you can't even lift it," Jack commented. He was leaning casually against a table occupied with various sizes of swords. Ellie dumped the broad sword back in its spot on the table and made for a smaller, slimmer one. They were in the weapons room, somewhere deep underground in Santa's workshop and had been for the last two hours. The room was large and bright, various weapons hung along hooks on the walls. Tables loaded with more weapons sat at the entrance near the doors. Apparently, this was just the training arena. A whole room dedicated to just weapons was located at the back. Ellie had no desire to venture in there. She was sure if she breathed, she would cut herself on the nearest artillery.

"And when was the last time you picked up a sword?" Ellie challenged.

Jack casually twirled his staff around with practiced precision. "Don't need too. I've got all I need."

Ellie rolled her eyes before trying to mimic his movements painfully, but the sword clanged loudly to the floor. She stared at it for a moment as if it had betrayed her, than picking it up she made her way over to a wooden dummy. There were a number of them stationed around the room, each tarnished with dents from previous training sessions. Gripping the sword tightly with her right hand, Ellie thwacked at the dummy, producing a loud thump as the sword dug into its neck. Satisfied with her strike, Ellie yanked the weapon back only to have it resist. "Oh, for crying out loud," she mumbled as she levelled her foot on the dummy's thigh, pushing against it to give herself more strength. But the sword remained unyielding.

Jack placed his staff against the wall before coming to Ellie's aid. Her face was turning a dark purple as she held her breath, pulling against the sword. "Here, let me." Ellie looked dejectedly at the sword once more before moving aside. Jack took her spot, and after giving the redhead a quick wink, tugged the sword effortlessly out from the dummy's neck. Ellie humped as he handed her back the blade. "At least you killed it."

"Right, now I'll never have to worry about tall, wooden, inanimate, dummies ever again. Rest assure the world that it's protected from them by yours truly," Ellie spat out sarcastically while making her way back over to the table. She threw the sword down hastily, begrudging any weapon in the room. So far she'd managed to bring shame to every swordsman who ever existed. The spears hadn't worked out either, and god forbid if she ever had to touch another chakram again. She'd nearly beheaded Santa.

The ancient man now sat at the back of the room, quietly observing the two. One of his large fingers tapped his head rhythmically as he considered Ellie's lack of weapon training. She had no skill in sword fighting, which was evident enough, but maybe, just maybe...

"I have idea!" He spat out, his voice filling up every crevice of the room and startling Jack and Ellie. "Hold a moment," he said in his thick Russian accent as he torpedoed his way across the arena and into the weapons room.

Ellie turned to Jack with apprehension on her face. They were getting nowhere with the training. Jack shrugged and crossed his arms, his attention falling elsewhere as he inspected a nearby katana. He was trying to play it cool. Indifferent even. Ellie shook her head and held open her arms in defeat. "I give up. You're useless, Santa's last idea nearly got him killed, and I'm never going to 'master' anything!" Ellie complained, putting full emphasis on 'master' and the lack there of. Jack traced a long finger along the Japanese sword, hearing her words but not replying. He didn't want to seem too eager.

The girl dropped her hands down to her side as Santa came barreling into the room, his footsteps heavy on the floor. A delicately carved bow fitted in his left hand, his right occupied with a quiver full of arrows. "You can't fight person to person, so we stick you further away!" he said while laughing at his own geniusness. "It's perfect!" Thrusting the archery equipment into Ellie's hand, he pointed hastily towards a target being pulled out into the center of the arena by some elves. "Now shoot!" The elves gave Santa a disapproving look at the idea of Ellie shooting before they cleared the room.

Staring down at the equipment in her hand, Ellie felt largely inadequate. Jack raised an eyebrow, thoroughly interested how this was going to play out. "Look, I'm no Katniss Everdeen, so maybe I should just put down the bow and accept the fact I will never be able to fight. Ever."

Both Santa and Jack cocked their heads to the side. "Who's Katniss Everdeen?" Jack asked.

"Alright, I swear modern pop culture is lost on all you guys. I mean, for real? Just last week, Bunnymund asked me who Harry Potter was. I mean Harry frickin Potter! What is wrong with you people?" Ellie shouted out, becoming increasingly annoyed at how hard it was to have a normal conversation with immortals.

"Isn't he a hobbit?" Santa offered, looking at Jack for support. Jack nodded his approval of Santa's guess.

Ellie nearly threw the bow and arrow on the floor. "Now that's just insulting," she cried out at their ignorance. "And I have no idea how to shoot an arrow. I'd probably shish kabob everyone in this room."

Santa rubbed his belly, imagining what it would feel like to be shot by one of Ellie's unpracticed, stray arrows. "Eh," he reasoned. "You suck at everything else. Might as well try."

Jack tried to contain his laughter at the look Ellie gave Santa. She seemed to execute the whole 'one eyebrow raised with lips pursed together' look perfectly. "I'm going to ignore that last comment," she replied coolly dropping the quiver to the floor and pulling a single arrow out. The shaft of the arrow was a deep wood colour, matching that of the bow. Knocking the arrow smoothly, Ellie became increasingly more comfortable with the weapon as she held it. It felt good in her hands, almost like an extension of her arm. She tried to image how Katniss would hold herself, having never done this before and needing the inspiration. Pulling the arrow back with her right elbow to her cheek, Ellie straightened her left arm and took aim. Jack and Santa retreated quickly to the side, having no desire to end up on the dinner plate tonight. Ellie took in a slow breath, letting instincts guide her as the arrow released, the string bounding back with a satisfying whip. The arrow seemed to fly in slow motion, meeting its target in the bull's eye only twenty meters away. Santa took in a deep, satisfied breath and clapped his hands together, immediately pleased. Jack stared between the target and Ellie, impressed. But she wore only an expression of confusion. "Bull's eye," Ellie whispered, looking down to the bow in her hand. "Move the target back further," she instructed the elves who stood nearby watching. "Please." The elves did as told and scurried out of the way as Ellie let another arrow loose, this one landing dead center again. She took three more shots, each one landing dead center.

Santa began his characteristic, deep hearted laugh. "Oh course! I told you every one of Lady Autumn's daughters is gifted with something!" he roared merrily coming to the conclusion everyone was looking for. "Archery! A useful skill no doubt. And here I was thinking you were good at nothing!" Santa chortled, coming up to Ellie and patting her none to gently on the back.

Jack followed in the old man's footsteps, coming up beside a very puzzled Ellie. "So archery huh?"

"Apparently," Ellie mumbled still staring at the bow in her hand. It was so odd how something she had never done before felt so familiar. As if she had been doing it her whole life. Ellie allowed her fingers to roam over the wood, appreciating the delicate curve of the bow. But something odd struck out to her. The wood seemed to be humming, like it was vibrating with energy. "Jack, do you see it?"

Raising an eyebrow, the winter spirit gazed from the bow to Ellie's look of deep concentration. "See what?" he asked.

Ellie's head snapped up, meeting Jack's gaze with such intensity he nearly had to look away. "The bow! Or the wood! I don't know what it is; it just seems to be humming! I mean look at it. It's like the Yew is trying to come alive," Ellie exclaimed nearly laughing at the shear ridiculousness of it.

Jack was so busy enjoying being close to her, he nearly missed the last part she said. "Wait. Hold up. Yew? How did you know it was Yew? That seems a bit precise."

Ellie's smile melted off her face and was replaced by one of deep thought. "No idea. I just knew. Just like I know the tables holding the weapons are made of cedar. And the grand doors at the entrance of the Workshop are oak, and the bedposts in my room are birch. Okay, now I'm starting to freak myself out," Ellie said as she quickly deposited the humming bow on the nearest table. As soon as she let go, the wood stopped humming, coming to a peaceful sleep. "Yep," Ellie reassured herself. "That's not normal."

Santa raised an eyebrow. "Interesting," he said while rubbing the bottom of his chin with his thumb. "It appears you can do more than just archery. Pick bow up again," the bearded man ordered. Jack gave his full attention to Ellie, noting her hesitation and wanting to encourage her.

"Hey, we're all freaks, remember?" he said comfortingly, referring back to their conversation in the morning when Ellie had rambled on uncontrollably trying to reassure him. He was going to pay it forward. The colour seemed to have drained out of Ellie's face. She looked exhausted after her trail and errors in the arena and the fact that the day's surprises were not yet over. It was becoming overwhelming; each piling on top of one another.

"Of course, just a couple of freaks," she responded as she picked the bow up again. The wood came alive in her hand once again, igniting at her touch. She wished dearly to put the bow back down, and escape from the evaluating eyes of Santa and the piercing blue of Jack's. This was just too much.

The old man grunted. "You are connected to nature. Yes, that is it. Much like mother but not as close to it. You practice and become better with nature, no?" Santa questioned.

Ellie sighed and put the bow back down. She folded her hands together, bringing them to her chest much like someone in prayer. "Look, as much as I am my dear mother's daughter, I'm nothing like her," Ellie said becoming angry at this new connection she shared with Mother Nature. "She's crazy and never wanted anything to do with me. I'm not about to bond with her over some freaky nature magic shit." Without giving the other two a chance to respond, Ellie removed herself from the room in haste. She followed the long intertwining hall that led back up to the Workshop, hoping she would be given some space. As she went, she dragged her hand along the cool stone wall to her right. The coolness was refreshing compared to the stuffy arena where Santa had begun to expose her abilities. She didn't want them though. She was her mother's daughter, the mortal one. Not the nature bitch who only reproduced encase she met her demise and needed a replacement. She wouldn't be just another expendable resource. Not to mention the idea of her having abilities freaked her out. Only a month ago had she been normal. Living in terrible conditions at home with her father yes, but normal none the less. It was so frustrating how she could never find peace. If it wasn't one thing, it was always another.

She took a deep breath, sighting the doors leading to the main workshop. _Oak_, she thought to herself bitterly. Had she always been able to do that? Name the type of tree? She'd never thought about it until now. It had never seemed important when you were busy dodging flying beer bottles from your father.

"Hey, Ellie," Jack called out from behind her. She silently cursed her luck, needing greatly to be alone. There was much to mull over after everything she had learned about herself. "Geez, you were out of there so fast," Jack said, offering anything to ease the tension on Ellie's face. The boy stood there, just a little behind her, staff held almost permanently in his right hand. His messy white hair swept to the side of his face so he could offer her genuine concern. No lies on his features. "You alright?"

Ellie bit her lip, lightly touching the oak doors. "Yeah. Just a lot to process right now. I think I'm gonna head to my room. Eat lunch in solitude," she said hoping Jack would get the hint.

But the boy wasn't going to let her off that easy. "I walk you there."

"If you insist." Ellie wasn't up to argue.

The two walked in silence on their way to her room. The noise of the Workshop enough to keep Jack's interest and give Ellie some space while still being in her company. Jack continued to steal glances of Ellie as they continued on their way. She had a deep brooding look on her face, pulling the tips of her mouth down. Running through different conversation starters in his head, Jack settled on one that didn't hold too much depth. Something to distract her. "You know that if you live in a dry, dessert like climate, it's common to have to check your shoes before wearing them to look for scorpions." Nailed it.

Ellie gave him a questioning look. "But don't you hate the heat. And you don't even wear shoes." Well at least it distracted her.

Jack waved his hand in the air, dismissing her comment. "Yeah, but that's not the point. And it's not that I hate the heat. It just makes me sick." Jack cringed at the memory of him visiting the desert once. It had been the year 1887 and Jack had wanted to see the Sahara. It was a huge mistake. The sun had made him so ill and exhausted; he nearly hadn't made it out. It was human warmth that he truly relished. It didn't make him ill, not like weather heat did. Mortal heat just never lasted around him.

Ellie considered his words. "If you say so. I just don't see the point why a frost spirit would want to go to the desert."

"Well, when you've been around for 300 years, going to the same places again and again gets boring." That was an honest truth. Jack had memorized almost every road in the greater cities of North America. That took time. But when time was all you had, what else were you going to do?

"I guess," Ellie offered weakly. Apparently she wasn't in the mood for conversing, so Jack left the girl to her peace for the remainder of the walk. Upon nearing her door, Ellie bid Jack a quick goodbye before retreating into her room. He tried not to take it offensively. His new found friend was clearly hurting but why? Jack hadn't the slightest clue. Did not everyone have parent problems now and then? He cringed at the thought, reminding himself that he had no family at all. He dearly wished he could offer Ellie some advice. Give her comfort. But what did he know about family? He'd been on his own for three centuries.

Ellie shut the door behind her quietly and pulled off her shoes. She threw them into a messy pile on the floor, in too much of a bitter mood to care for organization. She retreated to her bed, sitting on top of the covers and staring blankly at the opposite wall. Ripping her gaze away, she grabbed an elastic from her bedside table before pulling her hair up into a bun. Unsatisfied, she ripped the elastic out immediately, her hair falling into her face. In frustration, Ellie threw the elastic across the room. It was so aggravating how things turned out. First her mother was taken from her. Then her sister. And then to learn that she wasn't even related to her mother. She wished she could erase the last couple years of her life and go back to a simpler time when her mom and sister had been alive. She had been happy then. Of course her father was still a drunk, but it had become her mother's duty to protect them from him. A maternal shield. Upon her death, that responsibility had fallen to Ellie. How was she supposed to protect her sister from her father when she couldn't protect herself?

She hadn't been able to do it though. Ellie hadn't been able to protect and fight for her sister. That was when she had done the unspeakable. She had ripped herself from the world she and Ellie shared, leaving Ellie all alone. Any light in the world had truly gone out that day. Everything blurring together. It had become a losing battle for survival against the liquor that infected her father. Those days had been the hardest. For years though, she had coped. And then one not so significant day, a significant thing happened. And it had changed her life. But upon all the wonders that it brought, Ellie was now separated even farther from her mother. The nature bitch and all the powers she passed onto Ellie could suck it, for all she cared.

Ellie wiped at the moisture in her eyes. She wanted so badly to separate herself from her past. If she couldn't have it or cope with it, then what better to forget it ever happened; push it away? Kicking the covers off the bed hastily, Ellie allowed herself five minutes to release. Five minutes to relive the past and then forget it. The tears flowed freely, each a salty stain of distress and longing at the same time. She longed for her mother and sister. She longed for a father who loved them, and she longed for peace of mind.

But five minutes was all she had.

**XXXX**

**Well, another chapter! I'm not feeling terribly inspired by this story, as bad as that is. It's just not getting a great response so it's hard to take the time and write when you're not getting the best results. Anyways, my goal is 100 reviews, so please take the minute it takes and leave a review. It truly drives an author when the readers are actively involved!**

**Thanks a ton**

**Review, review, review**

**Later. **


	6. How to Watch the World Burn

**NO MORE FINALS! AHHHHH Which means more updates for all of you! Let us all thank the wonderful thing called Winter Break and celebrate Christmas in peace! I hope you enjoy this chapter; it introduces Pitch, who is extremely fun to write because I get to be violent haha. Poor Ellie, everything bad happens to her. Also, the song of the chapter is pretty dark and violent – much like Pitch. I like to think the song is from the perspective of fear. So you've been warned**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything besides my own characters, everything else belongs to DreamWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: Climbing Up the Walls – Radiohead**

**Chapter Six: How to Watch the World Burn**

Ellie had lain in her bed for an hour after her five minutes, staring at the wall, hoping it would give her the answers of how to move on. But the wall remained silent; the only sound in the room her heavy breathing. As the minutes ticked by, Ellie became restless. She was growing weary of the room and the feeling of going nowhere; stuck in her own misery. A bit of fresh air would be highly beneficial and her legs were becoming stiff. She needed to stretch. As she pulled herself off the bed, Ellie peered into the mirror hung on the opposite wall. She resembled something of a sad tiger; her red hair having found no peace in bed and her mascara running tracks down her face. She attempted to regain control of her appearance, but her curls were a lost cause, looking something similar to a birds nest. Finally she settled on pulling it up into a bun, before giving a quick wipe at the rogue makeup on her checks and under her eyes. She had little ambition to appear decent, so this would suffice.

She hoped to make it to the kitchen unnoticed. Her stomach was speaking in terrible gurgles, ranting at the abuse of not being fed since breakfast. If she could only slip in, grab some bread and cheese, maybe some ham for protein, that would be enough until dinner. Ellie walked cautiously down the hall, not wanting a confrontation with anyone. She considered herself lucky to be unmet the entire way to the kitchen and slipped in under the chaos of the many singing elves labouring over cookies. They were currently doing a rather spectacular cover of 'Don't Chat' by The Pussy Cat Dolls, dance moves included. Ellie bent low as she made her way over to the pantry, pulling out her desired bread and cheese. The fridge only a few feet away, Ellie managed to snatch her ham undetected, completing the meal much to her stomach's satisfaction.

As she exited the kitchen, Ellie began feeling calmer, knowing her stomach would soon be filled. She set off along the intricate hallways, making her way quickly to one of her favourite spots in the North Pole. She entered a room that had long ago been abandoned and had become her personal project to renew. It was a decent sized room, with a magnificent fireplace on the left wall. Old, royalty-like furniture had been pushed back against the walls, each piece collecting a significant amount dust from the lack of use. Beautiful French doors lined the far wall, exposing a stone balcony that looked over the North Pole. There was a feeling of long forgotten romance here; as if the room had been built with a dreamy, poetic vision in mind. She has asked Uncle Nick what the room had been used for and why it was abandoned. His answer had been a vague, "We made it as visiting room for guests. But we never have guests. Completely useless." and with that the room had become her sanctuary. No one ever interrupted her. She was completely free to clean away the dust and dirt, and think about wherever her mind roamed.

She sat down on a blanket she had stashed here a couple days ago and prepared herself a solo picnic. The cheese and bread tasted like edible gold to her deprived mouth. She wished she had brought something to drink though, for her throat was dry from her earlier weeping secession. As she chewed her food, she let her mind wander to the morning, before things had become so serious. She had enjoyed that part of the day at least. Jack had pleasantly surprised her. He kept her in good company, however enlarged his ego may be. And he seemed so concerned after the training session. Maybe a friend in a place full of Yetis and elves wouldn't be so bad.

Ellie swallowed the last of her food, feeling satisfied and remarkably better. She pondered for a minute whether to return to the others and be social, but her heart wasn't fully in it yet. Instead she made her way over to a corner where she had stashed some cleaning supplies, all in the name of renewing her precious room. Ellie grabbed a broom stuffed behind an old mop and began sweeping the floor rhythmically, enjoying the mind numbing activity. She had always done this as a child. Cleaning gave her purpose and a distraction when things got tough. As she continued to sweep, Ellie felt her mind rest easier and had almost swept half the room when a loud male cry resounded from the lower levels.

Ellie dropped her broom on the floor in surprise and booked it from the room with lightening speed. She hardly processed the chaos and cries in the hallway from elves and yetis as she made her way to the main Workshop area where she figured Santa would be. As she entered the globe room her senses blazed with fear as she halted before Santa, Bunnymund and Jack. Tooth was nowhere to be found. All three men wore equally fearful looks as they stared out of one main windows, looking south towards what Ellie could not see.

"What's going on? What's wrong?" Ellie heaved out between breaths, panting from her sprint.

"Something is wrong at Tooth's palace," Santa grumbled, angry that anything was threatening one of the Guardians. "We must move. Everyone to the sleigh."

"I'm coming with you," Ellie said defiantly, moving in step with the others.

"Oh no," Bunnymund said as he held out a paw, stopping Ellie from progressing. "This doesn't concern you."

Ellie turned to Santa with pleading eyes. "But I can't just stay here. I should do something!"

The man in red considered her words for a moment. "Very well. I need someone to look after North Pole while I'm gone. You in charge." Without giving her a chance to protest, the big man turned on his heel and led the way out. Bunnymund followed, shaking his head and muttering something about how unreasonable mortals could be.

Jack stood back for a second, giving Ellie a sad smile. "He's right you know. You wouldn't be able to protect yourself out there. We need you here, safe."

Ellie stared at Jack as if he had betrayed her. "Aren't you the God of Mischief or something? Isn't this what you live for? Doing dangerous things? I can help! I just need you to get me on that sleigh."

Twirling his staff awkwardly in his hands, Jack considered her plea but the hesitation on his face was all too readable. "Look Ellie, there are something's you're just going to have to let others do without you. It's not safe, alright? Santa was charged with your protection. So let him protect you."

"But you can't all just leave me here," Ellie begged.

But Jack's decision was final. He ran a hand through his messy hair, seeming uneasy at the tone in Ellie's voice. "We'll be back as soon as we can," he mumbled, and with that he was gone.

Ellie stood in the Workshop alone and abandoned. What a familiar feeling. She was sorely tempted to throttle the next elf who ran past her singing anything and in her anger, found her feet carrying her towards the training arena. She sprinted down the long corridor and slammed the doors open so violently, they nearly ripped from their hinges. She scanned the room quickly, taking in the inventory until her eyes landed on the desired object. The bow and arrow had been moved to a table along one of the walls after she had dropped it on the floor earlier in the day. It hummed as soon as she made contact with it, but instead of shying away from it, Ellie embraced the connection and retreated back to the main workshop area.

The Workshop had calmed down significantly since Santa's departure, giving Ellie time to think. She was in charge and she would use that to her advantage. Trying to ignore the cold feeling in her heart at being left behind, Ellie started ordering the place, taking command without appearing weak. "Alright, I want everybody's attention!" she yelled above the sound of the workers. "Tooth's palace is under attack, which means the North Pole could be the next target." As soon as the words left her mouth, Ellie regretted them. Yetis cried out as elves began to run around in a frenzy. It took Ellie three loud whistles with her fingers to calm the crowd down. "Hey, listen up. We can't afford to lose control, alright? We need a plan!" Ellie wasn't sure if she was being completely rational by organizing all the inhabitants of the North Pole for battle. She hadn't even a clue if she was doing it properly. All her knowledge of battle strategy came from movies, but it was all she had. And she would be damned if the North Pole was attacked under her watch and they weren't prepared.

She spent the next ten minutes ordering yetis to gather weapons and spread them out. Each yeti was grouped into fours or fives and stationed at different entrances. The remaining yetis were positioned in the main room with Ellie, who had slung her bow over her shoulder, along with the quiver. She fingered the bottom of the weapon nervously as she watched the chaos slowly turn into organized battle strategy. The elves had been ordered to retreat down to the training arena, where they would be kept safe and away from battle if it came to that.

Ellie stood silent and still as did the yetis, either waiting for Santa to return or something to attack. A long hour passed and still nothing disturbed the quiet. Ellie was beginning to think she had acted rather irrationally, organizing the North Pole like a military when a shadow caught her eye. She turned around violently, reaching for her bow and knocking it with lightening speed.

"Oh, how cute. They leave a girl behind to defend the premises. The old man must be getting cheap," a raspy voice called out. But Ellie couldn't pin the source. The voice seemed to be moving at incredible distances; one moment coming from her right, the next at the back of the grand room. "And look, they even gave her a weapon!" the voice chided with a pure condescending tone. "How terribly frightening."

"Show yourself," Ellie yelled out feeling rather blind. The yetis around her looked equally frightened; all gripping their weapons tighter.

A tall, slim figure stepped out from the shadows of a nearby corner. His long face was washed out and sinister, his sharp teeth catching the light. He appeared rather bored though, as if Ellie was just an annoying bug to be squashed under his foot. The man leaned casually against the table, inspecting his nails like he had nothing better to occupy his time with. "You know, I would have thought they'd have left the Pole under better protection. I mean a little girl? They must be crazier than I thought," the man spat out, laughing as if it was the best joke he had heard in a long time. Ellie locked her arrow on the man, her fingers shaking slightly under the prospect of letting it loose into a someone's skull.

"You're Pitch," Ellie breathed, become more alarmed by the second at this realization.

The man performed a tiny bow."At your service," he grinned. Pitch began to move around the room with ease. He picked up toys and inspected them while he walked, hardly making eye contact with Ellie. "This place has been inaccessible to me for a long time. Completely out of my reach," he hissed as he crushed a small toy car in his hand. "And now I'm finally here," Pitch said gesturing to the grand room. "I've had to suffer for a very long time in the shadows, watching the children of the world be filled with joy and wonder. Always the Guardians, right by their side to protect them. Do you have any idea what it's like to watch helplessly as everything you stand for gets destroyed?"

"Destroyed? Thank god for that. You only harm and hurt the innocent. You should have been destroyed a long time ago," Ellie spat out with as much courage as she could muster, her eyes never leaving her target.

Pitch stopped where he was and turned his full attention on Ellie. "But what is a world without fear? Fear is raw and beautiful. It drives people insane and makes them do the unthinkable. It is truly the world's most powerful emotion. You would know about that, wouldn't you, Ellie Harland."

A wave of shock ran through her body at hearing her name. Sweat was beginning to collect on her forehead as she told her hands to steady. "How do you know my name?" Her words were weak and shaky.

Pitch began to walk toward Ellie. He dragged a long nail over the toys as he passed, leaving scratch marks behind like tokens of his presence. "How could I not? I can feel the fear burning inside of you. It's so strong and raw, and easily accessible," he said, disturbing Ellie with his calm headedness regarding such a terrible topic. "You fear being left alone. Everyone you ever loved or cared about has either abandoned or hurt you and now poor little Ellie doesn't know how to trust. Better to push them away then get too close and have them leave you, right?"

Ellie sucked in a weak breath, the words hitting to close to home. "Get out," she ordered so quietly it was almost a whisper.

Pitch held a long hand to his ear, mocking her. "I'm sorry, did you say something? It sounded a little like _desperation_. We're not feeling scared, are we?" He was taunting her, and Ellie was incredibly tempted to give in. Her emotions were running high with anxiety and she was beginning to panic. Where were Santa and everyone else? Surely they would return soon and help her deal with Pitch. "Oh don't worry about you're dear old, jolly man and his little Guardians. I've done enough to keep them busy for a while," he sneered as if reading her mind.

Ellie counted to ten in her head before responding. "I don't want any trouble. Just leave now."

Pitch grinned, enjoying the discomfort radiating of Ellie. "Your fear is truly delectable my dear. Why would I want to ruin tha-" but before he could finish, Ellie's finger slipped from exhaustion and panic, sending the arrow straight for him. The arrow would have landed squarely in his chest had he not vanished only seconds before. Ellie cried out in frustration, not sure if she was relieved for missing a man's heart or torn about not hitting him at all. "So this is how it's going to be. A little excitement then! Can't argue with that. Now it's my hand."

Before Ellie could gather what he was referring to, a tall dark stallion emerged from the shadows, advancing toward her. It seemed to move with an eerie grace, its gold eyes trained directly on her. An overwhelming sense of panic took over Ellie's body as the horse stomped its hooves, preparing to charge. Knocking another arrow, Ellie let it lose, but it only seemed to melt into the horse's coat, being absorbed. Thoroughly panicked, Ellie knocked another one, retreating as fast as her legs would carry her backwards, but the horse was on her fast. It turned sharply on the last second, giving Ellie a strong kick in the ribs. The force of the blow knocked her backwards so hard, her head smashed painfully with the ground.

"Nothing says fear like physical pain," Pitch said coolly from somewhere in the room, but his location was lost to Ellie as she scrambled to her knees, coughing violently. A sharp ache was throbbing in her ribcage and her movements felt laborious. The horse had reared on its spot, neighing dangerously as it charged Ellie again. This time it shoved Ellie from the side with its long nose, throwing her violently into a work table and knocking it over. She moaned in pain, finding any reason to force herself up not worthwhile. "This Ellie, this fear, it is what makes the world tick. It starts wars and brings power to those who conquer. Only by breaking down someone's spirit can you truly control and manipulate them." His voice sounded close and when Ellie focused her eyes, the dark figure was only meters away from her. "I do hope you've learned something from this Ellie. Maybe as you watch the world burn, you'll understand why."

Without another word, Pitch and his horse vanished into the shadows leaving Ellie alone and broken on the floor.

**XXXXX**

**What a violent chapter! Poor Ellie, everything bad seems to happen to her. Any who, now that I finished finals (YAAAYYY) I hope to be writing more often. Once the stories finished, I'll probably go back and edit. I'm too lazy to do it now. But just remember, reviews make the updates come the fastest. **

**SO I propose a challenge! Everyone who has followed or favourited should write ONE review at least. That will bump the story into over 100 reviews! So accept the challenge! It's not too hard and would make one specific writer EXTREMELY happy!**

**REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW!**

**Peace out kiddies! **


	7. The Day that Finally Ends

**Oh my dear lord, this chapter was the death of me! I had no idea what direction to go in or what to say so thank the gods that it's over. Hopefully its easier to read that it was to write haha. Just so you know, I changed the timeline of the movie to better fit my story. So if it's not EXACTLY like the movie, you've been warned! Any who, I probably won't update until after Christmas so Merry Christmas everyone and congratulations on not dying December 21****st****. I hope everyone has a good holiday and reviews at the end of the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything besides my own characters, everything else belongs to DreamWorks.**

**Song of the Chapter: Promise – Ben Howard**

**Chapter Seven: The Day that Finally Ends**

The North Pole was a mess. Everywhere tables had been turned over, toys scattered on the ground, yetis cowarding behind anything that would conceal them. Santa cried out in dismay as he rushed off the sleigh, propelled by deep alarm. Tooth looked utterly devastated, having lost all her fairies and teeth, and now having to deal with this. Bunnymund sat still in the sleigh, his head in his paws, refusing to see the new destruction while Sandy hung his head low in sorrow. Jack leaped out behind Santa and followed him into the Workshop, witnessing the ruins for himself. All thoughts of Tooth's palace and finding his memories vanished.

"This cannot be!" cried out Santa as he rushed forward into the main room, assessing the damage. "Pitch was with us! How could he have been here too?" His voice broke as he picked up a doll that had been ripped apart and thrown the floor. "All the toys are broken!" Santa fell down to his knees, his bright blue eyes watering with grief.

Tooth fluttered past Santa and into the room, trying desperately herself not to cry. "We weren't even here to protect the place. I couldn't even protect my own home." She wiped away the tears that had fallen, trying to appear strong but losing the battle. "Everything's destroyed." Her voice was barely a whisper as Sandy came up behind her, giving her a reassuring rub on her shoulder. Jack hung his head low as he picked his way through the toys scattered across the ground, each one torn or ripped or shredded apart. Glass ornaments decorating the Workshop had also been smashed, leaving the floor dangerous territory. Jack knelt down and ran a long finger over a broken fire truck. How anyone could be so sick to destroy a child's joy, he would never know.

Jack's thoughts were interrupted by a terrible cry from the other side of the globe. He was on his feet and by Tooth's side in seconds, looking down at a bruised and unconscious Ellie. He felt the air rush out of his lungs at the sight of her broken on the ground a tried to calm himself. The air was dropping in temperature around them fast as he clenched and unclenched his hands, visioning how hard he would pummel Pitch into the ground. A violent bruise was forming beneath Ellie's left eye, her bottom lip cut. Her hands were bloody and cut from landing on the glass scattered around her everywhere. Her breaths shallow as she lay in unconsciousness in the middle of the destroyed workshop.

"Ellie," Tooth cried again, coming down to the girl's side and grabbing her hand. Sandy remained behind her, a comforting hand on her shoulder still. "Oh Ellie." Tooth sobbed now uncontrollably as Santa and Bunnymund rushed over, hearing her distressing cries. All the colour in Santa's face drained as he knelt by Tooth's side, muttering vulgar words about Pitch and how he had crossed a line. Bunnymund turned away from the group and kicked violently at an overturned table, smashing a hole in the middle. Santa -regaining his composure- began throwing out orders to nearby yetis, snapping them out of their daze and instructing them to prepare the infirmary.

Jack cringed as Santa lifted the girl gently off the floor, her breathing becoming more haggard with the movement. What little colour she had left in her face drained as Santa rushed her to the medical room, wasting no time. The other three Guardians followed and for a single moment, Jack was left all alone in the room. There was an eerie silence filling the great space, a quiet remnant of the destruction Pitch had caused. For all the beauty of the Workshop had been destroyed, nothing left untouched. Jack stood helplessly as the room came slowly back to life. Yetis trickled in to begin cleaning the mess, each one dapping at their own tears. Jack pursed his lips together tightly and took off after the others, stepping over the wreckage carefully. There was no music or liveliness filling the corridors as he proceeded after the Guardians, his eyes never leaving Santa carrying Ellie's limp body.

It took only two minutes of walking through the elaborate hallways until they reached the infirmary. The room was long and orderly, equipped with white, perfectly made beds set at intervals. Yetis were already digging through medical supplies as Santa placed Ellie down on a bed, ordering them to bring him bandages, ice and medical concoctions. She groaned quietly between her ragged breaths as he began examining her injuries. He tilted her head down with a gentle hand so he could better view the bruise and cut on her face. He muttered to himself in Russian, diagnosing her injuries and deciding how best to treat them. The other Guardians respectfully gave the man space to work but Jack would not back away. He positioned himself on the other side on the bed, silently giving Ellie words of encouragement, bidding her to recover. Santa gave him one look under a bushy eyebrow to keep him in line but continued working. Jack would give no interruptions during a time like this.

As Santa began assessing supplies from a tray presented to him by a yeti, Ellie began to moan more frequently, her breath becoming alarmingly short. "What's happening?" Jack breathed.

Santa furrowed his eyebrows in deep concern as he picked up a vial from the tray. Its substance was a golden liquid that seemed to move with heavy viscosity. "She is waking up," he said matter of factly. "Give her space. She will be in pain."

Jack held his breath as Ellie slowly opened her eyes. She wore an expression of deep confusion mixed with pain and for a moment began to struggle. Santa outstretched his arm, taking her right hand in his and making soothing sounds. She struggled for a moment with words, trying to form a sentence but the shock of everything was too overwhelming. Everyone in the room held a collective breath as the girl slowly began to calm down. Santa was the first to break the quiet and offer her reassuring words. "My dear. Fear not now. You are safe." Ellie tried to focus her eyes on the big man but they never landed on her target. Instead she twisted her neck at an odd angle, trying to ground her bearings and assess the situation. It took everything in Jack's power not to look away. The guilt of knowing they had left her here as an open target was too great. They had failed to protect her.

"Wha- what happened?" she croaked out in a harsh whisper.

"We hoped you could tell us exactly," Santa said while looking to the others for conformation.

Tooth fluttered forward to Santa's side. "Pitch did it. We just don't know how," she offered quietly, trying to hold back more tears at the sight of Ellie.

Something seemed to click in the girl's eyes at the mention of Pitch. For a split second Jack registered fear, but as quickly as it had come, it was replaced by anger. "Pitch. Yes, Pitch. Pitch was here. That son of a bitch," Ellie yelled out nearly in tears. In a flash of anger, Ellie had sat bolt upright but her rage died quickly with a cry out in pain.

"Ellie, Ellie. You must not overdo yourself. You are hurt," Santa said, trying to gently push Ellie back into the bed. "You must rest." Jack found himself nodding with Santa's words of plain wisdom, quite ready to hold down Ellie himself.

"But he attacked! He was here and he attacked. And he knew things, about me! That son of a bitch, I'm going to kill him!" Ellie was all white hot rage again, her emotions running high enough to ignore her pain for the moment. "We have to do something!"

Tooth was about to interject when Jack beat her to the punch."Whoa, easy now tiger. I don't think you're in any condition to be getting out of bed and kicking some ass right now." Jack placed a cold hand on Ellie's shoulder and pushed her back down as she tried to protest. "We can't just go handing people's asses to them if we can barely get off our own, now can we?" Ellie seemed conflicted by Jack's words. He was speaking the truth, no matter how much she didn't want to admit it.

"But I-"

"But you no. You're going to let Santa and his magical furry helpers help you and then when you are feeling better, we can go kick some ass, okay?" Jack knew he had won the argument when only a dirty look was sent his way, followed by no sass. But he would take a dirty look any day over a damaged girl who refused help. The others around him seemed shocked at his sudden take in command but no one was going to refuse Ellie's cooperation, no matter how it was achieved. The girl huffed in annoyance before moaning in pain. The expansion her attitude caused in her lungs had sent a shock of pain through her ribs.

"Let me have look," Santa ordered, not wasting any time. Ellie defeated, lifted up her shirt just below her bra, exposing a riot of colour along her ribs. Santa poked a finger in a very tender spot, forcing a squeak of pain from Ellie. "Probably broken," he muttered, ignoring the look of exasperation from her. "Busted lip, bruised cheek. Someone decided to mop the floor with her face, no? Let's see. What else?" Santa grabbed her hands and inspected them gently. There were small cuts on both of them, most likely from fallen on top of broken glass ornaments. "I always thought those ornaments would be a workplace hazard," Santa mumbled to no one's benefit. "Well, you are fixable. Take this," Santa said, shoving her the vial of golden liquid from before. "And all of you, I don't need all of you right now. I fix her, then we take break and act later. It is no good if we all half asleep. Out, out, now." The other Guardians seemed to hesitate but Santa was met with no resistance. Jack however remained. "You too Jack Frost."

"I'm sure, you know, that Ellie might want some decent company for a change," Jack offered quite pathetically. In truth, he did not want to leave her side. She looked so miserable lying on the bed, all bruised and bloodied. It always astounded him how fragile mortals were.

Santa was just about to protest when Ellie interrupted. "Actually Uncle Nick, it's fine. Besides, he convinced me I needed to be healed first and foremost. So he should at least have to stay and listen to me complain the entire time."

The jolly old man considered her words. "Very well. As long as he stays out of my way." Jack nearly smiled like a fool at the fact that Ellie had vouched for him. But he kept his cool, instead giving her one of his famous grins.

For the next hour, Ellie purposely complained about everything health care related. Santa seemed to enjoy her ability to rant about health care systems, comparing the Canadian's to the American's. She was purposely ranting to annoy Jack, who to her benefit acted annoyed. But he genuinely found her knowledge interesting. Not because it was interesting in the first place - Jack could have cared less about the differences in health care systems - but because it was her saying it. She seemed to get very caught up in it all, her eyes lighting up as she talked about the wait times in the ER or the lack of doctors in a needy world. It was rather odd that someone could look so intrigued about something so dull. It seemed very typically Ellie, to skip to a different beat than the average person would.

Jack groaned at the appropriate spots, propelling Ellie deeper into her rant until Santa had finished tending to her. By the end of it all, she had bandages wrapped around both hands and an icepack strapped to the back of her head by a tensor bandage. The hour had been largely taken up by Santa removing the broken glass in her hands and disinfecting the cuts. Her ribs however would have to heal on their own.

Throughout the entire time, Jack's thoughts would turn towards finding his memories. The idea of knowing who he really was so tantalizing, he hoped dearly Ellie would heal soon so they could be off. He was equally relieved when they finished, knowing Ellie was alright and knowing they would be on their way soon. Pitch's time was limited.

After doing a quick clean of the area, Jack and Santa both took one of Ellie's arms and pulled her slowly out of the bed. She wobbled unsteadily on her feet, grabbing onto Jack's arm with an iron grip to steady herself. Upon realizing she was cutting off his circulation, Ellie let go quickly and muttered a quiet sorry. Jack waved her off proving his toughness. Like a girl could ever really hurt him, he told her with pride, to which she scoffed at his ego. Once she had finally found her balance, Santa told Jack to escort her to the kitchens, get her something to eat, and then send her off to bed. Ellie had no protest to this. Her stomach was rumbling rather loudly. It had been hours since she had last eaten and her body ached from the day's trying events. How sweet her bed would be tonight.

Throughout the rest of the evening, Jack kept Ellie in pleasant company. He offered her jokes when she seemed to retreat into herself, reliving the day's events. He thought of himself as the ultimate distraction: cute and entertaining at the same time. He poked fun at Bunnymund and his cocky attitude, to which Ellie reminded him of his own. It was a comfortable cycle: Jack told a joke when Ellie looked to be in pain, she would then brighten up, if only for a minute or two, then he would crack another one. They continued slowly through the hallways, her injuries giving them much time to talk as they made their way to the kitchen. Ellie could only manage a little bit of food before claiming that it was time for bed. They had been awake for hours, besides her being unconscious. All she wanted was to pass out and seek her revenge later. Jack agreed with her, finding the time coming to an end quickly when they finally made it to her door after their late dinner.

"Well, this day never seemed to end," Ellie joked using the last of her energy. She had tried to appear as good natured as anyone could be regarding the last few hours, but she was dying to get some alone time. She needed sleep and her bed was lying only meters behind her oak door.

"Hey, don't say that. You'll jinx it," Jack joked, leaning casually on her door frame, not wanting to say good bye quite just yet.

"Oh god. Please no!" she joked in return before yawning greatly. "Anyways, I should get my ass into bed. I think my heads about to fall off from exhaustion and my body needs to just shut down for awhile."

Jack's eyes darkened at her words, his feelings of shame and regret surfacing once again. "Look Ellie, I'm sorry this happened to you. If we had acted better, none of this should have happened at all."

Ellie shifted uncomfortably on her spot. "It's not your fault Jack. Or anyone of the Guardians in fact. Pitch is a dangerous guy, much more dangerous than any of us thought. We'll just have to anticipate that he'll do all he can to hurt you guys. He's a man with nothing to lose. The most dangerous kind."

Jack took in a deep breath, processing her words even though he still felt the blame landed on them. "Probably. But we'll fight back. In fact, there's something we haven't told you and I don't think it's fair to keep you in the dark. Not after tonight." Ellie scrunched up her face, bracing herself for more bad news. "Pitch took all of the teeth that Tooth and her fairies have collected. You know how they hold memories, right?" Ellie nodded."Well, we need to get them back. Otherwise kids will stop believing." _And I need to get mine back to know who I really am_.

"So how do you propose that?"

"We're going to do it the old fashion way. Collect them ourselves."

Ellie took in his words, noting the magnitude of how important this was. "Why are you telling me this?"

Jack took this moment to look Ellie deeply in the eyes. "Because I think you should come with us. It's not safe to leave you behind. We need you where we can see you, where we can protect you always."

Ellie chewed on her bottom lip. "We're leaving right now?" There was no way she would be able to function without some sleep. Not to mention her body needed to rest after the days traumas.

"No, no, no. We're leaving after we all get some shut eye. Besides, it's three in the morning, a little late to start now. We'll begin once the kids go to bed tonight. So you in?"

"Well I'm not promising I'll be the most amazing tooth stealer that every existed, but I'll try." That was all Jack needed to hear. He gave her a lopsided grin as she opened her door, stepping half inside her room. "Thanks Jack. I'm glad you're here to look out for me." And then she disappeared behind her door.

Jack smiled like an idiot all the way to his room.

**XXXXX**

**So I've decided that you should all give me the most beautiful Christmas gift a writer could get, reviews! The more the merrier! My Christmas gift to you is the story, so now it's your turn! **

**I'm also curious as to what all of you think Ellie's center is, so let me know and you'll find out near the end if you were right or not!**

**Have a very Merry Christmas!**

**See you all later!**


	8. Falling

**I'm such a liar! I totally said I would update more because of the break, WORNG! Haha I've been spending my time watching The Walking Dead. Oh well. I think I made up for it with this beast of a chapter! Almost 4000 words! Enjoy and Review!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything but my own characters, everything else belongs to DreamsWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: Lights (Bassnectar Remix) – Ellie Goulding**

**Chapter Eight: Falling**

"There are no seat belts," Ellie felt the need to point out as she stood in front of the sleigh a day later.

"Funny, that's the same thing Bunnymund said the last time," Jack answered, coming up behind her and leaning casually on his staff. "But no seat belts are half the fun."

"Well, it's not that fun when you're falling out of the sky a thousand feet in the air," Ellie challenged him back while crossing her arms over her chest. She did so slowly, so as to avoid causing any pain to her ribs. Her hands were lightly wrapped with bandages, a soothing salve applied underneath. This was to provide relief to the sharp throbbing pain of the glass cuts. She had spent the entire day sleeping, occasionally being woken up by elves with medicine or a yeti ready to re-bandage her hands. She was feeling remarkably better, the medicine far more potent and quick healing than anything she had ever used before. She suspected magic to be involved. Before climbing into the sleigh, Ellie strung her bow and quiver on her back. It may have seemed ridiculous to bring a weapon tooth hunting, but she didn't feel safe going unprepared if anything happened.

Jack looked at Ellie out of the corner of his eye and gave her a quick smirk. She was becoming accustomed to these looks. It fitted his mischievous nature quite well. "Like I said, half the fun."

"Then you have a very skewed definition of fun." Ellie didn't give Jack a chance to say anything more when she climbed into the sleigh. She sat herself down gingerly to the left side, giving herself the edge to hold onto. They were going out tooth hunting. She trained her eyes forward, the rest of the Guardians following her lead by getting into the sleigh also. Neither her nor Bunnymund looked ridiculously impressed to be riding in the dare devil sleigh. Santa was as crazy a driver as a typical teenager, relying on instinct rather than safety. Tooth was buzzing with joy at the thought of collecting teeth as she took her place behind Jack and next to Sandy, Santa taking the reins at the head. He gave everyone a wicked grin as Bunnymund took his place at the far back and kicked the sleigh into motion. The reindeer charged forward, pulling the sleigh through the intricate maze of ice and out into the open sky.

Ellie clutched the side for dear life, holding back a scream as she felt Jack's gaze on her. Of course he was looking to see how she was handling this. Any sign of fear or doubt and he would never let her forget it. So instead she bit down on her tongue and gripped the side of the sleigh so tightly, she could feel the recovering cuts on her hands begin to open again. Jack seemed to notice her anxiety and leaned across her. He pulled her hands off the sleigh, his cold touch reassuring to her and gave her a quick shake of his head. "It's safe. Trust me." Ellie took in a slow breath, not breaking the connection with Jack and letting his presence comfort her.

Santa seemed to be enjoying himself rather too much, his laughter echoing over the roaring wind. "Here we go!" he yelled as he pulled out a snow globe and whispered a destination into it. Throwing the globe far in front of them, it burst apart into a swirling portal. The sleigh rode fast and hard into its mouth, Ellie bracing herself for what she didn't know. But the sleigh past through like flowing water, no hitches to be accounted for and what was once the vast Arctic had now become the crowded city landscape of New York.

Ellie was taken aback by the sheer size of the city. Everywhere she looked, blocks stretched for miles. Despite the late hour, people mingled on the streets enjoying the warming night air. Sounds of traffic and people calling out reached their ears even from their high altitude. Jack caught the look of amazement on Ellie's face. "Never been to New York, huh?"

Ellie who had either become more comfortable in the sleigh or forgotten her fear of flying was leaning far more over the edge to get a better view. "Never really could afford vacations unless we drove," she answered absentmindedly, her attention on the city below. "It's incredible!"

Jack nodded. "Yeah, I guess."

Ellie nearly snapped her neck how quickly she turned to face Jack, her look one of pure astonishment. "You guess? Are you even seeing what I'm seeing?"

Jack pursed his lips together. "When you can get around the world as easily as I can, I guess the novelty wears off."

"What a shame," Ellie said, missing the look of torment that quickly passed across Jack's face.

They continued on for a couple more minutes until finding a suitable block in Brooklyn. The sleigh slowly made its way to the ground before dropping the last foot, earning Santa a disapproving look form Bunnymund. The jolly man simply shrugged his shoulders before grinning to himself. "Well, we here now. Go collect teeth!" Everyone stayed rooted to their spot except Tooth, who was already pulling open a window from an apartment three stories high, Sandy right behind her. The others climbed out a little shaky from the sleigh ride.

"How exactly are we supposed to do this?" Bunnymund asked while staring after Tooth who was now on to her second window, her collected tooth sitting in a brown bag in her left hand.

"Good point," Jack added. "Do we just break in and steal their teeth? What if someone catches us? I don't really feel like getting a criminal record now, I've been 300 years strong without one. I'd say that's a record, huh?" No one seemed impressed at his joke. "Never mind then," he brushed off deflated.

"Breaking and entering is precisely what we do! Now go! There are teeth to collect!" Santa ordered as he made his way to a nearby building. Bunnymund twitched his foot uncertainly before muttering a "here goes nothing," and taking off. Jack turned to face Ellie before twirling his staff once. "Good luck," he said as he took off into the sky.

Ellie stood there alone on the street. She rocked awkwardly on her feet for a second before convincing herself to bite the bullet and break in to someone's home. She made her way across to an ally before Tooth came zooming to her side, nearly scaring the sense out of her. "I almost forgot!" she said in a high and excited voice. "This bag is for collecting and this bag has coins to leave behind! Happy gathering!" Ellie quickly took the two bags from Tooth before the fairy whizzed off again. One was empty, the other heavy from coins.

"Alright then," Ellie said trying to convince herself, "I am going to be the best damn collector ever." That was a straight up lie. Ellie spent the next hour climbing ladders in back allies. Every window she came up to was a gamble; it was either a lovely sleeping child's room or some poor sucker's bathroom, to which Ellie had now seen three naked butts. She had managed to creep her way into eleven bedrooms, confiscating thirteen teeth in total. She had only tripped twice. She was just bagging her fourteenth tooth when a knocking sound came from her left. Ellie froze in panic at the thought of being caught by some protective parent who had come to check up on their child. She had nearly dropped her bag in fright when the sound of a deep chuckle came from the window.

"Relax, it's me," Jack stepped into the room, tapping the window on his way and leaving a frosty design behind. "Just checking up on ya, seeing how we've gone all over Brooklyn and half of Manhattan and you've moved only three buildings down."

Ellie tried to regain her composure. She repositioned her bow indignantly, refusing to meet Jack's taunt. "Well, I've been having a blast scouting the local buildings. Apartment 2B belongs to a lovely old man who showers with his bathroom window open. 4A has a dog. A German Sheppard to be specific. A very aggressive German Sheppard to get into details. I tried petting him but he didn't like that. But apartment 6F has twins in it who both lost teeth today! Yeah, lucky me! I got two teeth for the price of one breaking and entering!"

"Not having such luck are we?" Ellie moved around the bed with a sleeping girl in it and stuck one foot out the window. She had to squeeze past Jack who had moved into the room because it was so small, the bed only a foot or two from the window. She could feel his cold breath on her neck as she pushed past him.

"We can't all fly," she said before exiting. She missed the look Jack gave her as she made her way down to the street. It was one of ego mixed with embarrassment. Normal people didn't fly. As if to prove her point, Jack leapt out of the window, closing it behind him gently, and whizzed past her to the ground. He landed softly and leaned against his staff as Ellie finally plopped to the ground. "Show off," she muttered under her breath as she began making her way to the next building across the alley. The windows were a little higher than the last, but Ellie wouldn't let her inability to fly slow her down.

Jack followed in her footsteps, gauging the same problem she was thinking. "Safety ladders further down the building. What are you ever going to do?" Ellie ignored the wicked grin he was giving her.

Shaking off her bow and quiver, Ellie strapped the two bags to her belt and grabbed onto the ledge of the window just above her head. Her hands felt sore and began to burn, her rips screaming against her actions, but Ellie was a victim of pride. She heaved ungracefully as she pulled herself up, wincing in pain. She had just managed to dangle securely in the edge when the problem of opening the window arose. She tried awkwardly to pull it open, the form a sleeping boy visible inside, but in her attempt, she lost her gripping and fell.

The ground would have made a sore companion but Ellie never met it. Instead a pair of arms wrapped around her waist, catching her before she landed. A rough sound escaped her mouth as her ribs ached but she was grateful for the catch, although she would never admit it. "Whoa there tiger, you're going to hurt yourself. More than you already are," Jack said as he steadied Ellie.

"Thank you, but I'm perfectly alright. I had everything under control." She wiped nervously at her forehead, hoping Jack wouldn't notice the sheen of sweat from her laborious task. She was pushing her body, and they both knew it.

"Maybe next time, you'll ask for help, okay?" Jack's concern was clear on his face. His eerily blue eyes too clear in the moonlight that reached the dark corners of the ally.

Ellie, who was momentarily distracted by those very blue eyes, missed the fact Jack still had his hands on her waste. For a moment there were no words, only a look of deep concern meeting one of surprise and embarrassment. "Yeah, maybe," she breathed out, breaking the moment before it became too intense.

Jack, who had long ago realized where his hands were but refused to let go, finally released Ellie. "I'll give you a boost. Teamwork right?"

Ellie nodded, biting her lip and refusing to meet his eyes. Now in agreement for their partnership, Jack walked over to the window and leaned down on one knee, his staff on the ground beside him. He folded his hands together on his knee, palms up and motioned for Ellie to step up. She mouthed a quick thanks before stepping into his palms, his quick motion up nearly catching her by surprise. She caught the edge, this time not labouring quite so heavily and easily slid the window open. Jack gave her one last boost, sending her over the edge and into the room.

She creeped her way over to the bed, slipping out one of Tooth's coins and switching it with the tooth under the sleeping boy's pillow. The transaction was swift and quick; Ellie feeling relieved and a bit relaxed at knowing Jack had her back. She picked her way back to the window, stepping over the toys littering the floor and peering down below. The drop would be a long one.

"Relax, I'll catch you," Jack said anticipating her dilemma.

"You'll drop me," Ellie challenged.

Jack held his arms out in a gesture of peace. "If I had wanted to drop you, I would have let you fall the first time."

Ellie humped, realizing how little her options were and the truth in Jack's words. But being near him made her so uncomfortable. His eyes seemed able to read every thought that crossed her mind, his arms always willing to protect her. It was something she wasn't used to. She had always been the one to protect herself. Maybe it was time to let others help too. So bracing herself, Ellie jumped out of the window and fell into Jack's arms below.

Jack caught her with ease and lowered her feet to the ground. The entire time the two held eye contact, their faces full of surprise at how well they fit together. Releasing her quickly, Jack cleared his throat and moved to grab his staff, Ellie's eyes never leaving his back. She could still feel his signature touch of cold on her back where he had caught her, and for once she didn't mind.

"We should find the others," Jack said once his staff was secure in his hand. Ellie nodded picking up her bow and quiver off the ground and stringing it over her shoulder. Her two bags secured tightly to her belt.

"Agreed." Silently, the two walked out of the ally, both trying to ignore to awkwardness of the situation and failing miserably. As if the other guardians had known they were being beckoned, they slowly regrouped, each comparing their bags of teeth to one other. Apparently while Ellie had been collecting her mere fourteen teeth, the others had made a competition for who could collect the most.

Both Ellie and Jack had been able to escape their tension with the presence of the others and soon enough, with all their bags a little fuller of teeth, they were heading to another city. Tooth buzzed the entire time, feeling joyous at the prospect of regaining faith of the children in the world. Her happiness was contagious and soon everyone was giddy with their tasks, putting their full effort into it. They managed to hit two more major cities before traveling to a place Jack knew all too well.

The sleepy town were his precious pond lay frozen stood quietly against the darkness of night. Before the sleigh had even touched down, the Guardians were bounding out; each determined to better the other in tooth count. Ellie smiled to herself as she watched Jack spring out of the sleigh, flying high into the night air. He was gone in a second, scouting the streets for homes where a tooth needed collecting.

Ellie had managed to collect five more teeth before finding herself at the back of a house where a sleeping boy had lost his tooth earlier that day. A long lattice structure climbed up the side of the house right beneath the boy's window. It would make a perfect latter for Ellie to reach her destination. Huffing as she climbed the lattice, Ellie found to her dismay the window already open.

"Oh, Ellie! It appears this room is very popular," Tooth said sitting beside the boy's sleeping form, Jack standing at the end of the bed.

"Looks like a party," Ellie said hanging half out the window. Jack moved over to her and grabbing an arm, pulled her in all the way. "Thanks."

Jack nodded in return. But before anyone could say anything else, a loud thump rang out as a big man in red appeared in the room, a large bunny following behind. "Oh look, we have party, no?" Santa laughed at the sight of all of them. "All we need is Sandy." Right on cue, the golden, silent man flew gracefully from the night. "Now we good to go!" he roared in laughter at the coincidence. This earned him a loud "shush," from everyone. As if remembering the boy fast asleep, Santa mumbled a quick apology. But it was too late.

Before anyone could make an escape, the boy had already pushed off his covers and was shining a flashlight in their faces. His face struck Jack as familiar, a boy called Jamie if he remembered correctly. The boy he had given a crazy, icy ride on the toboggan a couple weeks ago.

"Whoa," Jamie let out, shining the light on their faces individually. "Santa, the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, Sandman, and well I don't know who you are," he said referring to Ellie, "but whoa." The look on the boys face was one of absolute wonder.

"He can see us," Jack breathed out.

"Well, most of us," Bunnymund said quietly. Jamie's light kept going from each of their faces, all except Jack's. Jack's eyes furrowed in momentary grief, but Ellie grabbed his hand to comfort him.

"Don't do this to yourself Jack," she spoke quietly, feeling his anguish rise. But before she could say anything else, he was out the window and gone into the night. Ellie was fast on his heels though. She was out of the window and on the ground in seconds, running after him in what direction, she didn't know. She could hear Tooth call out behind her, but that was of little importance.

For the next twenty minutes, Ellie searched the streets looking for Jack, but he was nowhere to be found. "Ellie!" she heard Tooth call her name, catching up with her. "Ellie, I know Jack's upset. He's sensitive about this topic but there's nothing we can do. We just have to let him work it out."

"Work it out? Did you see the look on his face? He was devastated!" Ellie cried out, frustrated that Jack was hiding from them. "Where the hell did he go?"

Tooth zipped up to her side and placed a small hand on her shoulder. "I know it's not fair, but Jack needs time to work this out for himself. Now the others have gone back to get more teeth, we should join them. Jack will come when he's read-" but Tooth was caught off by the sound of hooves. "What is that?"

Ellie was already drawing her bow. "It's Pitch. He's here," Ellie whispered in a panic. "We need to find the others!" Tooth's feathers ruffled in defense mode, alert at the possible threat.

"They could be anywhere in the town," she breathed, zipping up and down frantically.

"Quite so," a raspy voice called out from the shadows. Ellie sucked in a sharp breath, that voice bringing dark memories. Pitch stepped out from behind a corner, six black horses following his stead. Each stopped the ground dangerously, their nostrils flaring at the thought of a new target. "Which is really the beauty of it all. Hard to defend yourself when it's six against two." The ghostly man walked towards their direction, a wicked smile lacing his face.

"Haven't you done enough?" Tooth cried out, her face mixed with rage and pain.

Ellie trained her arrow on Pitch's heart, this time not afraid to let it fly and hit its target. He would pay for all that he had done. "Oh Ellie, don't you look marvelous. You recovered quite well by the looks of it. Did you like the present I left for dear old Santa? After you passed out, I had my beloved horses trash the place. I think it gave it more of a rustic look, don't you? Not so orderly. A bit of chaos always livens a place up."

"What do you want Pitch?" Ellie spat out venomously.

"Not you actually. You're just in my way. And I have this one philosophy: if you have something useless, throw it away." Before Ellie could process his words, Pitch had vanished leaving his horses behind who charged without a moment spared.

"Get back!" Ellie yelled to Tooth who was low and ready to lunge on the nearing threat. But Tooth ignored her words and zoomed forward, thrashing at the beasts so quickly, it became a blur or black and green. Ellie cried out as a horse neared her. In all her anger and hatred at Pitch, for all the destruction he had caused, Ellie let the emotion boil up and release with the arrow targeted for the horse's chest.

But she knew like last time, the arrow would do no damage; only sink into to the horse's skin, causing no harm and offering her no protection. But something different happened. In her anger, she had missed a swelling of green energy forming at the tip of her arrow. It pulsed with her heart beat and flew on the tip of the arrow towards the horse. Upon hitting it, the green swirl disappeared for a moment in the beast's chest before exploding out in a wave of green energy, destroying the horse in the process.

Ellie fell back in shock, not understanding what had happened, but was quickly forced to retake her stance as another charged her. Beyond tired and confused, full of the same rage, Ellie let another arrow fly, the same green energy bursting to life at its tip and destroying the second horse. Ellie took down another one with the same process, her bow humming fiercely in her hands. Tooth had taken down the other three and had witnessed Ellie and her strange new gift when a loud yell filled the air from above them.

In their fight, the two had missed Jack, Santa, Bunnymund and Sandy take to the sky in the sleigh, fighting off a whole new wave of danger. Before Ellie could say anything, Tooth took off, leaving her alone on the ground to helplessly watch a battle she could do nothing about. The battle raged on in extreme intensity, with Sandy taking the lead. But soon he was overpowered by Pitch's immense darkness. Ellie had little understanding of what was going on but screamed as Pitch covered Sandy entirely, his golden light going out. She heard Jack let a retched cry out as he charged Pitch, emitting a great surge of power that shattered Pitch's dark matter.

In her confusion, Ellie felt tears pour down from her face. She had no idea what was going on, only that something terrible had happened. As soon as the danger had come, it had gone, taking something precious with it.

**XXXX**

**Poor Sandy. **

**Let's get to 70 reviews with this chapter, shall we? It would make my day!**

**Review! Review! Review!**

**Tootles!**


	9. The Darkest Truths

**So I moved on from the Walking Dead to True Blood. Oh my life is one TV series after another. But I managed to squeeze this chapter out between it all! But the more you review, the faster they come! Anyways, highly recommend you check out the song of the chapter. Florence + the Machine is my favourite band possibly ever. Her lyrics are really incredible. The songs about coming to truth with reality after being stuck in an illusion. Unfortunately Jack's confused about his true identity, and Pitch has something to say about it. Enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything but my own characters. Everything else belongs to DreamWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: Blinding – Florence + the Machine**

**Chapter Nine: The Darkest Truths**

The globe room was quiet except for the soft jingle of bells. Elves swayed slowly back and forth, the bells on their hats giving a soothing chorus of chimes. Lit candles created a warm glow in the large room, the golden light a tribute to the brave man they had lost. For now was a time of mourning. Sandy had fought bravely in the face of death and his memory was to be honored. The three remaining Guardians, Jack and Ellie stood around a star on the floor, each giving parting words to their fallen friend and letting their tears release.

After the honoring ceremony, Jack had refused to call it a funeral, the company departed, each going their separate ways. Jack saw Ellie's arm reach out to him, her eyes watering in her grief, but he brushed her off, not needing her sympathy in a time like this. For Jack didn't deserve sympathy. It was his fault Sandy had fallen. He had been the closest to him. He should have done better to protect him, to fight for him. But Pitch had finished the job before he had a chance to reach him.

Without paying attention to where he was going, only knowing he needed to get away, Jack sulked out of the room, pulling his hood over his eyes. He ignored the look of hurt on Ellie's face as he brushed her off and began wandering through the halls. He didn't know how long he had been walking until he found himself in a place he had never been before. It was an old room, with furniture covered in dust, long ago forgotten, the floor half swept. He shut the door behind him and made his way for the French doors leading onto a balcony. Once outside, he welcomes the cool wind. The air was refreshing. He hadn't realized how stuffy the Workshop had become during the ceremony, only that things didn't feel right without Sandy.

Jack bunched his fists into tight balls on the balcony ledge before yelling out in frustration. A powerful wind blew past him, his emotions mixing with his control over the weather and creating a hefty draft. All the snow on the balcony blew off, swirling angrily in the wind.

"I've been meaning to clear that balcony," a quiet voice said from the doorway leading outside.

Jack turned his attention to the speaker; of course it was the one person he wanted to avoid. Ellie shouldn't see him so vulnerable. "What do you want?" Jack said more curtly than he meant to.

Ellie turned her attention to her shoes, avoiding his eye contact as she stood in the doorway. Apparently she heard his tone too. "I didn't know anyone was up here. I didn't mean to interrupt."

Jack shook his head, frustrated with being interrupted when all he wanted was solitude. How backwards his life had become. "Look Ellie, Now's just not a good time. Go interrupt somebody else," he snapped.

Ellie sucked in a quick breath at his words. "Fine then, don't worry about it. There's plenty of other people I can go bother."

"Try not to get yourself killed on the way while you're at it. We don't need any more casualties. And of everyone here, you're the most likely to hurt yourself. Just another burden for everyone else." His tone was cold, like the winter weather he was so accustom to.

Ellie, who had begun to turn around to leave, snapped back in his direction. "You know what Jack?" she said sharply. "This is your problem. You spend so much time alone and finally when someone offers to be your friend, to help you when times are tough, you push them away. So congratulations, once again, you are alone." Without another word, Ellie turned on her heels and made for the door. Jack watched her as she stormed away, feeling guiltier by the second.

"I'm sorry," he called out after her, feeling ashamed of himself and already deeply regretting his words. "I just don't know how to do this. I'm not good being with people. I've been alone for a long time."

Ellie stopped for a second, her hand on the brass door handle, already pulling it open. "Haven't we all?" she said quietly as she retreated out of the room, her words lost to the wind so Jack never caught them.

He cringed as the door slammed behind her. Once again he was isolated, left alone in the freezing cold to which he was so accustom to. But this time he had done it to himself. He was the one who had pushed her away, the only person who had paid him any attention. Jack turned back to the balcony ledge, his sight over the white horizon, his face void of any emotion except a tear that had escaped his eye. Before it had even reached his nose, it was frozen. A tiny, crystalline tear. Apparently he was meant to be by himself. Whether by his choices or not, he would always end up alone.

After sulking in self pity or a while, Jack pulled himself together. He was no more confident in himself than he had been before his and Ellie's fight. If anything he despised himself more. But sulking would only get a person so far. So instead, Jack removed himself from the cold, wintery, bubble he had isolated himself in, and returned to the globe room.

It took a while for the entire group to congregate back to the globe room, but apparently everybody was feeling anxious to fight back. Being idle would do nothing, and it would mean Sandy's death was in vain. So one by one, after everyone had had their private time to mourn, they reassembled and ideas began to fly. Soon however, frustration began to settle in. No one could agree on a plan. Jack and Bunnymund wanted to confront Pitch immediately; use pure force to get him to surrender and pay for his actions. It was an odd moment when the two agreed with one another but their anger spurred them closer. The rest wanted a more subtle attack; a way to deal with Pitch and restore faith in the children of the world at the same time.

This argument went on for quite a while, Jack and Bunnymund arguing their point full heartedly against three who refused to do something so rash. "Wait a minute!" Santa bellowed aloud, his voice booming over the other four. "Hold phone, hold phone! I have idea!" The arguments stopped, everyone gave their attention to the big man in red. "It is Easter soon, no?"

Bunnymund crossed his paws, none too pleased at being interrupted for someone to point out the obvious. "Yeah, and I've been a little preoccupied lately. Can't even guarantee Easter will be a success."

Booth Jack and Ellie - who had only further damaged their relationship by yelling at each other for the past hour on what to do- furrowed their eye brows, neither catching on to Santa's plan. But Tooth was beginning to buzz faster, following the Santa's train of thoughts.

"The eggs Bunnymund!" she yelled out, not able to contain herself. "We'll help you with the eggs! Give the children something to believe in! With all our help, we can protect the eggs against Pitch!" The fairy clapped her arms together, giving them a toothy smile, the first since Sandy's fall.

Bunnymund tapped his foot on the ground, deep in thought. Everyone around him seemed to be holding their breath waiting for his answer. This could very well be the answer to saving the day. "Alright," he muttered. "Yeah, alright. Let Easter save the day? Sounds good to me."

Tooth clapped her hands together once more before zipping over to Bunnymund and giving him a hug. Bunnymund looked as if he could have done without it. "Oh this is fantastic! This is exactly what Sandy would have wanted; for us to get back on our feet and fight back!"

"Then let's get to the warren!" Bunnymund said pushing her away gently. He was finally getting the appreciation Easter deserved. Everyone held equal looks of relief, finally having a plan of action.

Suiting up, weapons ready in case of emergency, Santa bellowed, "To the sleigh then!"

"Oh no mate. My place, my way of travel," Bunnymund said, thumping his foot heavily on the ground. Before anyone could protest, a large hole opened up beneath their feet, swallowing them into the ground below. Jack was completely caught off guard, letting out an unintelligent sound as he fell down a grassy tunnel. Once recovered from the shock, the trip became fun, an obstacle course of sorts. He was soon laughing and whooping along with the cries coming from everyone else. As quickly as the tunnel opened up, it ended, shooting everyone out into a grassy meadow. Ellie who had been in front of Jack landed flat on her back, Jack shooting out behind and landing on top of her.

"Oufff," she gasped as his weight fell on her chest, making it hard to breathe. "Geroff," she mumbled incomprehensively beneath him.

Jack pushed himself up quickly, holding out a hand for her to use as leverage. A gentle man's action. He could tell by her face though that she was not impressed, still holding a grudge against him. "Sorry," he said quietly, but Ellie brushed off his hand and pulled herself up, refusing to make eye contact. Jack knew he deserved this, but it still felt like a sharp blow to his inners. He would be his own undoing.

Bunnymund, who was increasingly excited at the fact that Easter would be their saving grace, had his arms stretched wide open. A giant grin crossed his face. "Welcome to the Warren," he said like a proud father.

For a momentary second, Jack left all bitter thoughts aside to enjoy the view. The meadow was large and lush, not an inch uncovered with grass. Warm sunlight kissed the hills with a healthy glow, filling every doubt Jack had every felt with hope. He knew it was a foolish and false hope, but for a second he couldn't resist. Apparently the meadow was having a similar effect on everyone else. Jack quickly stole a glance at Ellie, enjoying the smile that stretched across her face. Both Tooth and Santa had goofy smiles on their faces too. A rare occasion in a time so dark.

"It's beautiful," Ellie whispered, walking forward and running her hand across an extravagant flower on a large bush. The act was so tender Jack had to resist the urge to go over to her and grab her hand, feel the warmth transfer from her skin to his. But it was a fool's act. He had hurt her and now he was paying for it with the silent treatment.

"It truly is," Jack let slip. For a quick moment, Ellie's head snapped in his direction. Her eyes narrowed before she turned back away, ignoring him.

Bunnymund hopped forward snapping everyone out of their daze. "Alright, there's work to be done-" but he was caught off guard by a high pitch scream. "What the?

"Get back," Santa ordered, stepping in front of everyone. Without a thought, Jack grabbed Ellie by the wrist, yanking her behind him and using himself as a shield. He could tell she had drawn her bow by the sound of a twang coming from behind him. Everyone else had taken a battle stance, the horrors of what Pitch was capable of still fresh in their minds.

The screaming came nearer, coming from one of Bunnymund's many tunnels lying around the warren. Just as the sound reached its climax in loudness, nothing but a young girl, approximately the age of four, zoomed out of the tunnel. She had poorly cut blonde hair, and was brandishing a colourless Easter egg, giddy with being in the meadow. The five let out a collectively held sigh, each lowering their weapons and laughing awkwardly at the absurdity of it.

"It's just a girl," Bunnymund laughed before becoming more serious. "How on earth is there a girl in the Warren?"

"Oh, snow globe," Santa laughed uneasily.

"How on earth did a little girl get a hold of one of your snow globes?" Jack piped up, eyeing the girl with curiosity. Ellie for once was nodding her head in agreement, her interest taking over her anger at Jack.

"Well, when you two left, there was a bit of a fiasco with a dog and Bunnymund, which led to everyone being knocked out by sleep dust and then when we woke up, one of Santa's globes was missing. I guess we found out where it went!" Tooth rambled on nervously.

"Apparently," Ellie added.

"Well, we'll return her when we're done getting the eggs ready. Easter's our top priority right now," Bunnymund commanded, directing everyone's attention back to the pressing matter. The little girl didn't seem frightened at all, being in a strange meadow with strange people. Instead she was quickly occupied with a bush full of the same delicate, colourful flowers Ellie had found earlier. Bunnymund eyed the girl for a second suspiciously, as if she was about to wreak havoc on his precious meadow. "Right. Well... the plan's to help paint the eggs. It's your job to guide them, make sure they have the best paint jobs at top notch quality," he instructed.

"But where are the eggs-" Ellie began before being interrupted by a load whistle coming from Bunnymund. No sooner had he finished whistling when an endless stream of eggs came filtering out of the tunnels, all colourless and waiting to be painted.

The group worked hard and diligently, fulfilling the quota Bunnymund had given them. The hours passed quickly however, with Ellie doing a good job of ignoring Jack. Any attempt he had made at reconciliation was shot down. It seemed girls need a while to get over fights.

Nearing the completion of his quota, Bunnymund demanded everyone's attention. "We're nearly there guys. Easters less than an hour away and we have almost all the eggs finished. I wanted to thank you for all the help..." Bunnymund's words started to drift from Jack's ears, being replaced by something so familiar yet just out of reach in his memory. It was the sound of a laugh; a laugh he had heard before. Quickly his feet began moving towards the sound, leading him to a tunnel off to the right of the warren.

"Jack, where are you going?" Ellie called out to him, the first real words she had spoken to him since the fight. Everyone else's attention was on him too.

"I just thought I heard something. I'm going to check it out." He was already inside the tunnel when he heard Ellie call back.

"Don't be too long. We're almost ready to go."

The laugh echoed through the tunnel, pulling him deeper into it. It was a sound so familiar, it broke his heart trying to place it. Like liquid water he was trying to grasp in his hand, always slipping through the cracks. The deeper he went in though, the louder the sound became until the tunnel opened up to a grand room. The size was unbelievable. The ceiling so high it was lost in shadows. Long skinny pillars connected floor to roof, and everywhere he looked piles upon piles of golden cases filled the cave like room. "The missing teeth," Jack whispered to himself.

He was just about to turn around and call for the others when a raspy voice called out. "Quite right," the voice bounced off the walls. "And you're looking for this one, aren't you?" Pitch called out, stepping from behind a pile of tooth cases so high, it was triple his height. "I know why you want these memories so badly Jack. They hold the secret to your existence." In his long, skeleton like fingers, Pitch revealed the one case Jack so desperately wanted. Jack had to resist the urge to charge Pitch and pull the case from his hands. "Such as shame, isn't it, to walk the earth for three hundred years, and to not even know why? That must drive you crazy. A boy ripped from his life so suddenly, to be alone and isolated for not one or two, but three centuries! And nobody understands, do they? They tell you to get over yourself, to deal with it. Poor Jacky ends up all alone, even in the company of others."

"Don't talk about me like that," Jack spat, lowering himself into battle stance, his staff ready to fire. "You don't know me."

Pitch advanced towards Jack before slipping into the shadows, but his voice rang loud and clear. "You're a rebel without a cause. No one needs you or wants you, they don't even understand you. How can you love and protect those who care so little for you?" Pitch whispered the last sentence, now behind Jack. It was so eerie how the man could move from place to place at his speed. A chill ran up Jack's spine now. Whether it was because he was so close to Pitch or the horrendous truth in Pitch's words, Jack didn't know.

"They care about me," he gritted out, turning sharply on the spot to confront Pitch who had already vanished, Jack meeting empty air.

Pitch's voice now carried from a corner far off in the room. "Don't fool yourself Jack. They use you because they need to. But how quickly do think they'll drop you once they have no more need of you? You're an asset to them, nothing more."

Jack ran from his spot retracing his steps, trying to find the exist, but the layout of the room had changed. Where he had come from was now blocked by a wall. Jack pounded his fists against it uselessly. "Shut up! SHUT UP!"

"Am I hitting a nerve? Oh deary me, that wasn't my intention. I'm only trying to give you an objective perspective. But deep down Jack, you know it's true. You're meant to be alone. It's what you're good at. The others know it too. Even _she_ does." Pitch stopped for a second to allow his words to hit home. "Why do you think she's been ignoring you?" His voice was eerily close, and as Jack turned to its direction, Pitch stepped out of the shadow with a sympathetic look on his long face. "You know why she ignores you, don't you? It's because she deserves better. Not a pale, cold, insolent, boy who will only bring her down. What can you offer her? The world doesn't know you exist, it doesn't need you. So how could you expect her to give up the world for you?"

Jack had begun breathing quickly, his breaths short and fast. "She... she..."

"She will never be yours. She will never want to be yours. You're better off alone Jack. She's better off without you. Don't bring her down to your level. You'll only hurt her." Pitch's voice rang in his ears, a sharp truth he knew he had been fighting within himself since he had first met Ellie. Jack could never give her or anyone what they needed. He was a frozen waste of space that caused chaos in a path of destruction.

Pitch was now inches away from him, slipping the golden case he had so longed for into his hand. "See for yourself Jack. The past doesn't change anything at all. You are who you are now. And that's nothing."

Jack gripped the case in his hands, feeling the world being ripped apart beneath him. "I can redeem myself," Jack spoke quietly, trying to find anything to pull him out of the pain. "I... I can show them I'm worth something. There's still Easter, you haven't destroyed us yet."

Pitch raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? The one time everyone was depending on you to help save Easter and you weren't even there?"

Jack furrowed his eyes in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Pitch began to retreat, walking backwards and disappearing into the shadows once more. "It seems you've disappointed them again Jack." Without another word, Pitch had vanished completely. Jack was left alone in the quiet to think upon his words. How terrible he felt, being confronted with the truth. But panic began to work its way through Jack's body, dominating his thoughts. Something had gone wrong with the Easter eggs. The sound of a wall moving behind Jack let him know the tunnel had reopened. He turned around and bolted out, not knowing what to expect.

Upon exiting the cave-like room, the opening to it closed off behind Jack. He was once again in the warren tunnels. Taking a step forward, Jack was met with the sound of a crunch coming from under his foot. He looked down at the ground and was met with the devastating sight of hundreds of broken eggs. He followed the trail back up to the meadow, the destroyed eggs littering the ground everywhere. His heart sank deep in his chest as he clutched the case holding his memories. He had no idea how long he had been in Pitch's cave like room, only that it had been long enough for Pitch to wreak his destruction.

Jack touched down on the grassy ground, having searched for the others only to find them at an Easter egg hunt in England. Bunnymund was hopping around frantically, trying to get the disappointed children to see him. "I'm here! Right here!" he said pulling out a poorly covered egg from a small bag on his hip. "Here, look. I know this egg isn't beautiful or anything, but it's yours. Take it!" he pleaded more desperately, but the child simply passed through him, a feeling Jack knew all too well. "They can't see me," Bunnymund panicked. "They can't see me anymore!"

Once Jack's feet were firmly on the ground, it didn't take long for the others to turn on him. "Jack, where were you?" Tooth cried out in anger. She zipped up to him, pain so clear in her eyes; it stung at Jack, a pang of guilt running through his body.

"I was just-" he began to defend himself.

"You abandoned us when we needed you! Pitch destroyed everything!" she cried out. All the others had gathered by her side, each wearing equally disappointed and angry looks.

"No, I didn't mean to. I just heard something in the tunnels and-"

"What's this?" Santa breathed infuriated, grabbing the golden case out from Jack's hand. Jack's heart beat revved up to twice its normal tempo, knowing how bad this looked. "You were with Pitch?" he spat, throwing the case back at him and Jack awkwardly catching it. Jack turned his attention to Ellie quickly, who's look nearly broke him in two.

Thinking as carefully as he could, given the circumstances and knowing that saying the wrong thing could cost him everything, Jack said, "No, that's not it! It was a trick. Pitch deceived me! I swear I didn't know he was behind the noise I heard." He was speaking frantically now, the words coming out so fast he hardly knew what he was saying.

"You shouldn't have gone Jack, we needed you and you left," Tooth argued back, her voice so strained she could barely get the words out.

"This is just so typical," Bunnymund spat out next. "I knew we couldn't trust you. You're just a selfish, brash, arrogant, git who cares for no one other than himself. It was a mistake to trust you." Bunnymund's words were cruel but they hit home. Turning around to face the others, seeing their disappointed looks, so full of anger and despondent, Jack didn't waste a moment longer being in their presence.

Without another word, Jack took off to the sky, separating himself from the ones he had come to care for, with no intention of coming back.

**XXXXX**

**Happy New Years Everybody. I hoped you all had a good break, got some good Boxing day shopping! Looks like things are getting tense with everybody. Jack just doesn't know how to handle people very well I guess.**

**As always review! The more the better and the faster the chapters come out!**

**Here's to 2013! Later!**


	10. Go Where You Can't Follow

**This chapter took a while to write, it's the longest one yet! But hopefully you all like it! I will give you a quick warning this chapter contains some darker material. I know it can be a sore spot for some people as they may have dealt with something similar, so please read at your own discretion!**

**I also dare you to listen to the song of the chapter without crying.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything except my own characters, everything else belongs to DreamWorks**

**Song of the Chapter: No Heaven – Justin Nozuka**

**Chapter Ten: Go Where You Can't Follow**

Jack took off into the sky, the cold air whisking him far from the others and taking him where they wouldn't follow. He didn't belong; he only made a mess of everything. He was completely useless. So what was the point? His tears were frozen before they barely left his eyes as he soared south. He continued on his path in a state of pain, biding the winds to take him to the bottom of the earth where he belonged. He reached Antarctica in half an hour, the frozen, barren land whose temperature was too harsh for humans. How perfect he fit in here. If he never left this land, the world would keep on turning, ignorant to the fact they were short one frost spirit.

Jack flew over icy sheets of frozen water and made for the inland, a small settlement catching his eye near a rocky shore. It was a small researching station, a couple scientists mulling over newly collected data, preparing a meal over a fire. Jack normally passed over sights like these, knowing full well he would receive no attention, but something shiny caught his eye. He changed the direction of the winds, making his way over the station and touching down on the frozen ground. He walked stoically to a panic table near the fire, the top set up with simple cooking supplies: cutting board, herbs, plates, cutlery, and a small sharp knife perfect for skinning a fish. That would do. Jack slipped the knife from the table as one of the scientist's meandered over, ready to skin a fish he had caught. Jack ignored the man's complaint at the sudden loss of cooking equipment and took back to the sky without a second glance.

He continued further inland, ignoring the tears that were free falling from his eyes. In a minute's time, he found a suitable clearing, blanketed in fresh snow; Antarctic mountains nestled around like curious observers. He touched down on the undisturbed snow, dropping to his knees and throwing his staff aside. He gripped the knife tightly in his right hand, furious with himself and the world for bringing him to this point. But centuries had past, and his life had not changed. There was simply no other way. He had no reason to exist, just a bothersome spirit who caused chaos in his path of destruction. Surely he wouldn't be missed. A great relief perhaps, to the others to know Jack Frost wouldn't be in their way anymore.

He gripped the knife even more tightly in his right hand, great heavy sobs racking his throat now. Nothing mattered anymore. No one had cared about him in the first place. He was just a tool that had been used and when proven faulty, had been thrown away. It was some sick joke, a destiny he was given to fulfil but had no chance or choice to do so. So he would make the final choice for himself then, and end it all.

Thoughts of those he had come to care about, Santa, Tooth, Sandy, even Bunnymund and Ellie filled his mind with a bitter taste. How foolish to think he belonged. How ridiculous to think he ever could. But he wouldn't be a burden anymore. He wouldn't be invisible anymore. He just wouldn't be.

How tempting a thought and how scary it was at the same time. He had seen mortal lives come and go, so natural in the human world. Life was so painfully given and easily taken. Ridiculously unfair and beautiful at the same time. But he had witnessed the lives of many men and now was his time to join them in spirit. He held the knife to his wrist, prepared and yet unprepared at the same time. He took a deep breath and held the knife against the skin of his left wrist. He would be free in only minutes, a thought that scared Jack beyond anything he had felt before.

He pushed harder on the blade, breaking the first couple layers of skin. Alarm shot through him as silvery blood spilled forth, dribbling down his hand and onto the snow below. Jack stared down at the incision, eyes wide and startled. The pain was sharp and immediately a sense of regret filled his heart. "No," he whispered with great panic, dropping the knife and immediately applying pressure to the cut. Fresh tears streaked his sullen face, full of regret and shame. "Oh god," Jack whispered between quiet sobs. "Oh god, oh god."

"That wasn't fair to him," Ellie said quietly crossing her arms and digging her left foot into the grass. They were still at the Easter egg hunt in England, no one knowing quite what to do now. Everything had gone so terribly wrong; there was little anybody could do. "It wasn't just his fault, we were all to blame."

"And how do you reckon that?" spat Bunnymund, throwing his arms into the air with exasperation. "Where was he when Pitch attacked, huh? Oh, that's right; he was bloody off the map getting his stupid memories back. How responsible of him, to put himself first above everybody else's needs!"

"Well you didn't need to say all those things! And Pitch was behind it all the entire time! You know Jack. You know he would never abandon us when we need him. He's been here the entire time fighting, hasn't he? One slip up and suddenly its 'get the hell out of here'? If that's the way the world worked, people would be stuck in a permanent state of disappointment!" Ellie shouted furiously, storming up to Bunnymund. She knew the others were to livid to understand the reasons behind Jack's delay, so in his absence she would fight for him.

Bunnymund's nostrils flared, his breathing heavy with umbrage. "Jack is a fool; he needed to be put in his place."

Ellie resisted the urge to punch Bunnymund in the face. She needed to be level headed here; she needed to fight for Jack. She owed him that much for all the support he had given her. "Then you're no better than Pitch." The look that passed on Bunnymund's face told her she had crossed a line, but she about to take it back.

"Ellie," breathed Tooth in shock, "how could you say that?" The fairy's colour had drained out of her face as she fluttered nervously beside Santa.

"Then how could you say those things to Jack?" she challenged, her voice wavering. The others kept silent, hearing the terrible truth in her words. Santa swore under his breath in Russian, a contrite look clearly visible on his face.

"She is right, and you know it," he spoke with great melancholy. "We have turned on our own. Let Pitch poison us against each other. We must right this wrong! We have nothing left but each other!" Santa's voice cracked as tears streaked down his face.

Tooth nodded by his side, her own tears mirroring Santa's. "I- I can't believe we did that. We shouldn't have been so hard him."

Ellie closed her eyes in relief for a quick second. It was upsetting things had come down to this point, but there was no way but up from here. "We should go after him," she said, her voice hitching. "I don't think he should be alone right now." Ellie hastily brushed away one of her own tears. "Pitch has had his destruction, there's nothing left we can do here but sulk."

"But Jack could be anywhere Ellie. It's best just to let him cool off for now. He'll return when he's ready," Tooth said flying up to the girl and placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "It's probably best to go home. We need to gather out strengths, find a way to fight back," Tooth said weekly as Santa pulled out a globe from his coat pocket, setting their destination to the North Pole.

Ellie rocked on her heels for a moment, torn between going back or waiting for Jack. "Come on kid," Santa urged. "He'll find his way back. He always does."

Ellie let herself be pulled forward by Tooth, stumbling through the portal Santa had opened and into the globe room of the Workshop. When Tooth released Ellie, the girl trudged her feet over to one of the workbenches, pulled a stool out and sat down. She rested her head on her right hand, quietly tracing the groves in the wooden table with her left index finger. No matter how hard she tried, thoughts of Jack kept creeping into her mind. They had been for awhile, if she was honest with herself. But in the pressing moments of late, all she wanted was to be in his company. He had a way of being extremely irritating at times, but he was always there, even when she wanted to be alone. Always except for now.

The others seemed to be lost in their thoughts, no one really knowing what to do or how to act against the most recent devastation. Tooth however seemed to take pity on Ellie's unsettled state and flew over to the girl. "How about a distraction?" she asked feebly.

Ellie bit her lip and realizing there was nothing else to do, shrugged.

Tooth stared at the ceiling for a moment, hoping the rafters would give her inspiration. "That green light, the thing that shoots out with your arrows, do you know what it is?"

Ellie perked up a bit, eager to get her mind off of Jack and curious herself of the strange green energy. "I have no idea. I've never done anything like that before. Never seen anything like it either."

Tooth seemed encouraged by this as she took the stool on Ellie's right. "Well, do you remember what you did when it happened? Did you think anything specifically, say anything of importance?"

Ellie considered the moment the light first shot out of her arrow: a brilliant green swirl of energy igniting on the tip and obliterating the dark nightmares of Pitch's creation. "I don't remember thinking or saying anything. It was just this great overwhelming feeling of anger and... I don't know, this feeling of needing to protect those I love. Everything was happening so fast."

Tooth bit her lip, deep in deliberation. Santa and Bunnymund had found their way over to the girls' workbench, hearing Elli's description of her newly found battle weapon and eager for the distraction. "You said it was green swirl of energy?" Santa questioned, crossing his inked arms and rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "I have heard of this, but only once before. Some three hundred years ago, one of Lady Autumn's daughter's could do something similar. Only her light was gold, and it spread light in time of darkness, give people hope against all odds. Yours, it seems, is an offensive energy. Very useful for destroying enemies."

Ellie gave herself a second to let the information process, still not understanding it. "But why green? What is it and how come I couldn't do it before when Pitch first attacked me? It would have been useful then."

Santa smacked a hand down on the table hard, making everyone jump. "Because, you did not have the love you needed before to fuel the energy. Don't you see? The energy is life! Like Lady Autumn fuels life into nature! And the lives you wanted to protect were the ones you loved, who were in danger!"

"Oh Ellie," Tooth cried out, "we love you too!" Before Ellie could get a chance to escape, she was locked in a tight embrace, the fairy nearly strangling her in a hug.

"Yeah kiddo, we'd never let anything happen to you either," Bunnymund said, giving her a light punch on the arm once Tooth had released her.

For the first time since her mother's passing, Ellie was overwhelmed with a deep sense of caring. No one ever told her how much she was worth to them, or that they would always protect her in return, just because they loved her. It was silly, such a simple feeling of devotion to bring tears to her eyes, but it was one she could not deny. "Thank you," she mumbled wiping her tears away with the sleeve of her shirt. "I really mean it," she whispered.

Tooth seemed to be tearing up again. It appeared she was a bottomless well. She pulled Ellie in for another tight hug. "Anytime." Santa gave a warm laugh, the first one Ellie had heard from him in a while, and pulled Bunnymund into the girls, squishing everyone into a group hug.

"Everybody loves everybody!" he cried out.

"But Jack," Ellie huffed out from under everyone. "What about Jack?"

Santa pulled back, relieving everyone of his heavy weight. "If he does not return in an hour, we will find him," Santa said firmly. "We are not complete without him. Not anymore."

Ellie gave a small smile, longing for the boy with the snow white hair. "Agreed."

The ground was covered in a thin layer of Jack's silver blood, long ago frozen in the cold air. Jack lay hunched over, sobs still racking his throat. He had come so close to doing it, to digging the blade deep enough to end it all. But as soon as the blade made its first shallow cut, he had dropped the knife like it was on fire. It was all so terribly confusing. He was ashamed he had tried to do it in the first place but equally upset he had not gone through with it. He hesitantly looked down at his wrist through his teary vision. His hand was laced with small streams of blood extending down to his finger tips. Only a faint white line remained where he had cut the blade into his skin; a faint white line accusing him of being a coward. He was too pathetic to survive the world, and too weak to end his misery permanently. How fast immortality healed him, Jack thought bitterly. It was the one thing he wanted to escape but the only thing keeping him alive.

Jack had failed once again, even at killing himself; his immortality refusing to let him go. There was no way out of his frozen hell. Jack let out a retched scream, the wind around him swirling into a nasty storm. In his pain, Jack missed the sound of a pop, not noticing the presence of someone behind him. As his scream died out, his sobs returned.

"Jack?" a female voice called out from behind him but he ignored it. "Jack?" the voice called out more frantically, becoming louder. "What are you doing?" A figure of a girl rounded on him and screamed out his name. "JACK! Oh my god, what did you do?" Ellie cried out as she slammed herself into the ground beside him. "What did you do?" she screamed at him again. "Oh my god!" Ellie whimpered as she grabbed the knife beside his hand and threw it aside. She cried openly as she grabbed Jack's wrist, looking for the wound. The blood trails pointed her straight to the faint white scar. "Why would you do this to yourself?" she sobbed.

"I had too," Jack wept between his heavy breaths.

"You're so stupid Jack," Ellie cried out, tightening her grip on his arm with iron strength. "How could you do this? I can't lose you too. How could you do this?" Ellie sucked in a great sob, clutching on to Jack's arm as if letting him go would mean he'd finish the job he started. Her fear was too great that he would try and hurt himself again. For Ellie had been here before, first with her mother, than her sister. It was all too much. She thought she had finally surrounded herself with people she loved who wouldn't leave her. And now she was here with Jack, trying to prevent him from committing something he couldn't undo. "You're so stupid," she repeated over and over again, beginning to sound like a broken record. "You can't leave me. I won't let you."

The two remained like that for a long time, holding each other and crying until there were no tears left. Ellie had been long ago started shivering violently, but through her despair had been able to ignore it. Now her teeth were chattering sporadically, but she would be damned if she left Jack's side now.

"You're freezing," Jack said quietly, clutching to Ellie's arm like an anchor.

"I'm not leaving you. I won't let go Jack," Ellie said between her shivers. "Why?" she whispered, Jack's other arm now around her shoulder to protect her from the cold, Antarctic air. "Why did you do it?"

Jack took a second to answer, not sure how to form his words to express his reasons. "I had nothing left," he said simply, letting her gauge the weight of his answer and how much there was behind it.

Ellie adjusted her grip. "You had us Jack. You had me."

"But I didn't. I never had anything to begin with. I've been alone for three hundred years, and that's all I was ever meant to be. So there was no point in trying anymore."

Ellie traced a finger over the faint scar, imagining what would have happened if Jack had gone through with it. It was far to devastating to think about. "Jack, we all make mistakes, and we're sorry for the way we treated you. But that doesn't mean we don't want you. There was just so much going on. It's easy to say things you'll regret later. And I so regret what was said to you. I wish I would have stood up for you then," Ellie chocked bitterly, painfully fighting against herself to not spill anymore tears. "Please believe me."

Jack looked towards the white sky, a grim expression set on his features. "Sometimes, it's not that easy."

Ellie bit her lip and burrowed her face into Jack's arm. "I know Jack. I've lost so much too. But that's why we have to fight for it. We can't give up on the things we love or else there would be no reason to care for anything."

"I don't know what I'm fighting for though. I don't even know why I'm here to begin with," Jack said, coming down to what seemed to be the root of all his problems. He had no cause, no direction, no reason.

"Jack, you're not the first one to have an identity crisis," Ellie said trying to be light hearted. Then something occurred to her, something so important, she nearly slapped herself at her idiocy for having forgotten about it. "Jack, your memories! You have your memories still!" Ellie pulled herself away from him, her eyes full or concern.

Reaching into his pocket, Jack pulled out the tiny, gold case. In all his misery, he had forgotten about it too. His memories just seemed so pointless when nothing held purpose to him anymore. He looked up to Ellie, her lips blue from the cold air, body shivering violently, but her face held only encouragement. Holding tightly onto the case, Jack touched the top of it lightly with his other hand, not sure how to engage the memory. Immediately a golden glow spread across his vision, leaving behind a different world than the cold Antarctic.

He was in a place he had been many times before; the pond in the sleepy town he considered his home. There was a deep sense of familiarity, like remembering a long forgotten dream. The woods around the pond were frost covered, the water frozen although the air was warming towards spring. A small girl wearing skates called out from the shore. She had long brown hair and was donned in simple clothing, her youthful face full of excitement as she waited for him.

"You be safe now, Jack," an older woman called out behind him. She stood in the doorway of a simple log cabin near the pond. "Watch over your sister now." Jack turned to face the woman, his mother. Her expression was kind as she leaned against the door frame, arms folded, hair pulled back in a tight bun.

"Don't worry, we're just going to have some fun," Jack called out. He ran down from the cabin, making his way to the shore beside his sister. He stopped at the ice and gazed down at his reflection. Deep brown hair, warm brown eyes, a goofy smile on his face. He grabbed his sister's hand and pulled her out onto the ice, barefoot himself. She laughed loudly, enjoying the thrill of sliding about, occasionally falling but knowing her brother would be there to pick her up.

Jack raced to the shore, looking for anything to ramp up the fun and finding a long, wooden hooked stick near the shore. This would work perfectly. He spent the next ten minutes chasing his sister around with the stick, enjoying the warm sun on his back while playing their game of tag. At the climax of their game, a loud cracking sound filled the air. Both Jack and his sister stopped immediately, Jack dropping the stick in alarm. "Jack, what was that?" his sister asked, her face full of worry.

Jack stood still as a line in the ice started to form. "It's okay, it's okay. Don't look down. Just look at me," he said reassuringly.

"Jack, I'm scared," his sister said as the ice beneath her began to crack more.

"I know, I know," Jack said calmly, taking a step towards his sister, but a spidery web of cracks formed beneath his foot upon setting it down. His heart rate began to pound, but he had to stay calm to get his sister to safety. "You're going to be alright. You're not going to fall in." Jack took a second to consider his options but time was a luxury they didn't have. The ice would only last so much longer. "We're going to have a little fun instead!" he said plastering a smile onto his face.

"No we're not!" his sister cried, her voice cracking with worry.

"Would I trick you?" Jack asked trying to play the situation lightly to ease her.

"Yes! You always play tricks!"

Jack steadied himself on the delicate ice. "Well, not- not this time," he said as more spidery cracks erupted. "I promise. I promise you're gonna be- you're gonna be fine. You have to believe in me." Jack turned his tone even more casual and light as the cracks spread. "You wanna play a game? We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play every day! It's as easy as one- whoa!" Jack took a step closer to where he had dropped the stick, making the movement overly theatrical to get a laugh from his sister. "Two-" another step. "Three-" one final step. His sister was laughing harder now, her worry leaving her face. Crouching down, Jack picked up the stick with his right hand. "Alright, now it's your turn. One, that's it, that's it-" the ice began to crack more quickly beneath their feet. "Two-" his sister was losing her balance, sucking in a worried breath. "Three-" Jack hooked the stick around her waist, thrusting her around and onto stable ice.

For a moment, Jack laughed out in relief, his sister smiling at him. But before another word could be spoken, the ice beneath Jack cracked, spilling him into the icy water below. The last thing he heard was his sister cry out his name. The sensation once in the water was intense, and for once in three hundred years Jack remembered what it felt like to be cold. As soon as the sensation had come though, the memory ended, Jack being returned to Ellie's side.

"Jack?" she asked cautiously.

For a moment, he was dazed, completely speechless. Then the words came rushing out of him, all his emotions which were under lock before exploding out. "Did you- did you see that?" he asked, his voice rising in bravado. "It- it was me! I had a family! I had a sister! I saved her!" Jack let out a laugh so incredible Ellie couldn't help but smile with him.

"Jack that's fantastic!

"I know." For a second he considered his own words then looked up to the moon in the sky. "That's why you chose me," he said more quietly. "I'm- I'm a Guardian." He turned his attention back to Ellie who sat shivering in the cold. "Ellie, I- I- I'm so sorry!" Jack furrowed his face in despair. "I- I can't believe I did that."

Ellie reached out her hand and grabbed Jack's. "It's okay Jack. You're here now. That's what matters. You didn't go through with it. And that says a lot."

"I'm here now," Jack said repeating her words quietly. "We have to get back! Ellie, we have to get back. I know what we have to do!"

"Okay! Alright! I have one snow globe left," Ellie said, pulling one of Santa's favourite traveling tools. "It's how I found you." She began shaking it and was just about to say "North Pole" when Jack stopped her.

"Wait! There's somewhere else we have to go."

Ellie reeled her hand back. "What are you talking about?"

Jack smiled for the first time in a long while. "I know how to defeat Pitch."

**XXXX**

**So I have an alternate version of this chapter where Jack actually goes all the way. I thought it was a little too dark but if you guys want to read it I can post it as a bonus chapter at the end! You just have to ask!**

**I'll update once we get to 85 reviews, that way I have some more time to write! So don't forget to review, even if you've reviewed already, feel free to review every chapter haha!**

**See you then! **


	11. Save Me

**Well hello there, it's been a while. So to compensate, I present you with this 5, 600 word chapter. Took 8 hours to write people! Nearly went crazy haha. Remember to review! Definitely check out the song of the chapter. It's pretty powerful!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything but my own characters, everything else belongs to Dreamworks**

**Song of the Chapter: Make This Go On Forever – Snow Patrol**

**Chapter: Save Me**

Jack pulled on Ellie's arm, tugging her through the portal. The scene stabilized around them, the swirls of the portal coming to a stop. Before them was a sight so familiar to Jack, he couldn't help the smile that crept on his lips. The frozen pond, which now held so much more meaning to him, spread out before them. Small flowers that dared to pop up in the still lingering snow dotted the greening grass, the thick ice of the pond slowly melting in the warming days.

This was his home.

"Where-where are we?" Ellie asked as she stuffed her hands under her armpits. Her fingers had gone completely white, her body wracking with violent shivers. In the depth of his revelation, Jack had failed to notice the state she was in. Humans normally didn't fare well in -30 degree temperatures of the Arctic. Only now did the severity of the extreme weather don on him.

"Jesus, Ellie. You're blue."

"Wha-what?" she stammered out.

Jack reached out a hand and ran his thumb lightly over her cheek. "Your lips are blue."

For once Jack's touch was the warmest thing Ellie had ever felt. "Ah, well, th-th-that's what you get for g-going to Antarctica without a j-jacket on."

"I did this to you," Jack said quietly, his blue eyes heavy with shame as he lowered his head.

Ellie snatched Jack's hand from her cheek and held on to it tightly. This action caught Jack completely off guard. The look Ellie gave him was so intense; he could almost feel her anger physically entering his body. "Don't you dare say that J-Jack. I chose to come get you because you n-needed someone. And I will fight hell before I deny you that." But Jack only hung his head lower "Hey!" Ellie shouted, snapping his head up fast. "You d-don't get to pity yourself. Y-you think you're the only one who's ever felt suicidal? Jesus, Jack, I don't have enough fingers to count all the-the times I thought about suicide. My l-life wasn't easy. I watched everyone I love leave me. I had n-no one. But I pulled through it. You had three hundred years of having no one. I-I think you're allowed to feel a little depressed. But you pulled through it. And th-that's saying something Jack. You are s-s-so strong, and there are people who love you. Don't deny yourself that!"

For the first time in a very, very long time, Jack remembered what it felt like to have someone care for him. It was by far the most incredible feeling he had ever felt in three hundred years. It was the feeling of warmth touching a part of him he had sealed off and left in the cold for centuries. "Thank you," he said very quietly, holding Ellie's gaze with such unfailing trust. It was the most genuine thing he had ever said.

"Any-anytime. Don't think I'd ever l-leave you behind." Ellie was now shivering so violently, she could barely get the words out. "I-I-I know you wanted to come here to defeat Pitch and all, and I th-think that's great, but you don't suppose we could go somewhere warm first? I-I can't feel, well... anything. Actually, it's like this awful numbness. R-really awful numbness," she rambled between chattering teeth.

Jack pulled his hand out from Ellie's and gently ran his thumb over her blue bottom lip, much like he had done before. It was incredibly tender, the concern in his eyes as he watched her shiver. Ellie for a moment forgot to breath. "There's a work shed by the pond. They built it a couple years ago. I think that's where they do maintenance in the summer; lawn mowers and the like. I'm pretty sure there's a small room heater in there too."

"P-Perfect."

Jack gently pulled Ellie towards the shed located in between some cedar trees near the pond. It was small, wooden, and packed full of gardening supplies, tools, and as promised, a small heater. Jack plugged it into an outlet, turning the heat on to full blast. He situated them in the left back corner, utilizing utility buckets as makeshift chairs. The shed was cozy in a strange way. All the tools and gardening supplies felt like a barricade, blocking them from the evils of the world and offering them a moment of solitude. Ellie held out each hand to the small heater, grimacing as the feeling returned to each digit. The two kept quiet for awhile, enjoying the need to not say anything. It was comfortable.

"So how did you find me?"Jack finally pepped up, breaking the silence.

Ellie had now taken off her shoes and was defrosting her toes. "I actually had no idea where you were. I just told the globe 'Jack Frost' and luckily it brought me to you. You really couldn't have picked a slightly warmer place to be alone in?"

Jack frowned slightly to himself. "I thought 'where could I go that no one would follow?' "

"Well that didn't work out to well for you, now did it?" Ellie said as she, finally satisfied with the feeling back in her toes, put her shoes on.

Jack's mouth pulled up at the corners. "No, it didn't."

Ellie, finally finished with tying her shoes, looked up at Jack."I suppose the others are probably wondering where we are," Ellie said with a small smile echoing that of Jack's. "You going to tell me what this master of plan of yours is?"

Jack leaned forward, propelled by the sudden need to be closer to her. He resisted the urge to tuck a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "I suppose you'd want to know." He was using humour, which was probably terribly inappropriate for their current situation, but it felt so good and he couldn't resist. The look on Ellie's face as he teased her was incredibly provoking.

"Well... yeah," Ellie stated obviously.

"And I suppose I should tell you. Especially after all that we've been through," he egged on, appreciating the fact that he was alone with her in the very small shed, the only light coming from a two windows on either side of the shed and the glow of the heater.

Ellie raised one eyebrow. "Yeah, I suppose you should."

"But..." he stalled. When would he get the chance to be this close to her again? To feel her heat mixing with his cold. To know that all her attention and only her attention was complete focused on him.

"But what? No but! Why is there a but?" Ellie complained.

"But, especially after everything we've been through," Jack said, his tone becoming incredibly more serious, "there's something I want to do first."

Ellie huffed out in frustration, about to complain once more when Jack closed the space between them. His right hand reached the side of her face as his mouth gently met hers. It was incredibly tender and managed to leave Ellie completely wordless for once. For the first moment Ellie seemed caught off guard. She held perfectly still in shock before finally giving in and returning the kiss.

Jack himself was surprised when she kissed back. All that had been running through his head prior to his bold move was the need to be as close to her as possible. He hadn't even considered whether or not she would return the sentiment.

This feeling though, the feeling of not only being close to someone in trust but physical touching them in an intimate gesture was beyond words. Ellie's touch seemed to burn his skin with fire, a heat so extraordinary he could only beg for more. The sensation was electrifying as he deepened the kiss. In truth he had only ever kissed one girl before and that was over three centuries ago. But instincts drove him on and it felt so incredibly right to be here with her. Inspired by all the couples he had seen kiss in parks for three hundred years, Jack moved his kiss away from Ellie's lips and trailed down her neck. Ellie sucked in a deep breath of shock at the new sensation before arching her neck for better access. Jack felt like he was on fire as he came back to her lips, connecting them once more. Ellie responded with equal vigor as she ran a hand through his hair, lightly touching the back of his neck and driving him overboard.

Through all the battles they had fought, all the arguments and turmoil's they have been though, this one moment wiped them clean. Jack now had a purpose and it was to be here, to protect the ones he loved. Ellie was his charge as she had saved him and now it was his turn to protect her. "You saved me," he whispered, breaking apart their kiss, although their foreheads rested together.

Ellie held up her hands and gently held Jack's face between them, lifted his head up to stare into his eyes. Her own brown ones full of desire and satisfaction. "Don't get all cheesy on me," she joked, her breath heavy from the kiss. "But you know I'd never leave you to your own self-destruction." She kissed his lips again quickly before drawing back. "We can't both be self-destructive. One of us has to be there for the other otherwise we'd both be a mess."

It was Jack's turn to give Ellie a quick, teasing kiss. "And now it's my turn to fix things." Jack groaned in pleasure as Ellie refused to give up him so easily, pulling him back down to continue where they had left off. Coming up for air after another string of kissing, Jack pulled back to speak. "I think now I should tell you what my plan is."

"And what's that?" Ellie mumbled.

Jack traced his fingers lightly across her collarbone. "What's the one thing Pitch can't do?"

Ellie shook her head. "I don't know, he seems pretty powerful to me."

"He can't fight those who don't believe in him. He can't touch the children who have absolute faith in the Guardians," Jack said with growing enthusiasm. "That's how we defeat him. With the children of the world. All we need are those kids."

Ellie frowned, finding a flaw in his plan. "But Jack, how do you expect to gather at the children of the world to fight him. That's a little absurd and it puts the children in danger."

Jack gave Ellie one last kiss. "But Pitch can't hurt them if they're strong enough in their belief. And right now I only need one."

xxxxx

Jack led a very flustered Ellie out of the shed. If it was even possible, Jack's hair was messier than before, a result of their alone time together in the shed. But that mattered little to Jack. Ellie was his purpose, and of course the children of the world. They were important too. So now he had a job to do, and it wasn't going to be easy.

"So you understand the plan?" he asked as he turned around to face Ellie, the two now standing by Jack's beloved pond.

"Yes. You go gather the children of the world, or at least only a few of them. You make them believe again after they've lost faith, and destroy Pitch to a bloody pulp with it. Or at least just leave him dead, because kids shouldn't witness someone being beaten to a bloody pulp. Meanwhile, as you're gathering the children, I'll return to the North Pole, round up the Guardians and meet you at the pond to take down Pitch."

"Good then. I'll see you in a bit," Jack said, more than impressed at how Ellie could say all that in just one breath. Ellie nodded as she pulled out the last of the snow globes Santa had given her for transportation. Jack resisted the urge to grab her by the arm and pull her into him once more, but there were things to do now that were bigger than them.

Before he had to watch her leave, Jack took off into the night sky, moving the winds to take him to his destination. He smiled like a fool the entire time as he soared over the quiet town, finally landing just outside the house of a very important person. The one who would help them defeat Pitch. In this his very particular house, a simple one no doubt, lived a boy named Jamie. Jack had been keeping a particular eye on this very boy, almost like a guardian himself. It was because Jamie had an immense amount of belief in the Guardians. His faith never wavered despite the other children's growing lack of faith; all due to Pitch of course. But Jamie wouldn't fail him; it was only a matter of getting him to help despite the fact that he couldn't see Jack.

Propelling the winds to take Jack up to the boy's bedroom window, he was luckily surprised to see Jamie awake. The boy with chestnut hair and large brown eyes was perched on his knees, clad in pajamas, and looking quite concerned at a stuffed bunny slouched on the bed covers in front of him.

"Okay, look. You and I are obviously at what they call a crossroad. So here's what's going to happen. If it wasn't a dream and if you are real, then you have to prove it. Like right now." Jamie paused for a moment, his eyes wide with plead. "I've believed in you for a long time okay. Like my whole life in fact. You kind of owe me now. You don't have to do much. Just a little sign so I know. Anything, anything at all!" Jamie waited anxiously for his sign. But the bunny remained motionless. With a disappointed sigh, he tossed the bunny aside and off the bed. "I knew it." Jack lowered his eyes in sadness. It was heartbreaking to see a boy so small and once filled with so much hope lose it so fast.

In attempt to ease Jamie's disappointment, Jack tapped the window lightly with his finger. A swirl of frost danced across the glass, catching Jamie's attention. The boy's eyes widened in shock. He looked quickly back at the bunny on the floor before returning to the window as Jack traced an Easter egg into the frost. "It's real," he breathed as Jack moved on to drawing a rabbit next. With deep concentration, Jack pulled the frost from the glass, shaping it into a 3D form of a bunny. The bunny zoomed around the room, tracing circles around Jamie. The boy laughed with excitement, unable to form his joy into words. The sight was so welcoming to Jack, he was soon laughing along with him.

Bounding to the top of the room, the rabbit burst into snowflakes, gently falling to the bed below. "Whoa! Snow?" Jamie cried aloud, reaching his arm out to feel the new phenomena. A single flake touched down on his nose followed by two simple words. "Jack Frost."

Jack, who had now come fully into the room, stopped in his tracks. He wasn't sure if he had heard right. "Did he just say-?"

"Jack Frost?" Jamie said again, this time louder.

Jack sucked in a breath of disbelief."He said it again. He said- you said my name!" Jack breathed quietly, moving closer to the bed as Jamie turned around in his direction.

"Jack Frost!" Jamie said with utter certainty and yet disbelief. His eyes were as wide as saucers.

"That's right! Bu-but that's me, Jack Frost! That's my name! You said my name!" Jack was absolutely astounded. The first child to say his name in 300 years in actual recognition of him. He couldn't help himself at being recognized, it was incredibly thrilling and relieving. Jamie's mouth had fallen wide, his eyes not leaving the spot where Jack was standing. Then a thought occurred to Jack. "C-can you hear me?" Jamie nodded slowly. "Can-can you, can you see me?" he stuttered in disbelief. Jamie nodded once again. "He sees me!" Jack shouted in triumph. "He-he sees me!" Jack let out an incredulous laugh. He jumped off the floor, somersaulting in the air and bounding from spot to spot in his excitement. Never had he had a more joyous day in his very long life.

Jamie leaped up onto his knees, joining in on the excitement. "You just made it snow!" he yelled with astonishment.

Jack's smile had never been wider. "I know!"

"In my room!" Jamie yelled with even more astonishment.

"I know!" Jack yelled back again, giddy.

"You're real?"

Jack nearly had to contain his excitement to get his words out. "Yeah! Who do you think brings you all those blizzards and snow days?"

"That's you?"

"Yeah!"

"Cool!" Jamie shouted, hanging on to every single word Jack was saying. "And what about the Easter Bunny? And the Tooth Fairy? And what about-?"

"Real, real, real! Every one of us is real!" Jack said with so much conviction, he nearly cried at being able to express himself to a child who could see him.

"I knew it!" Jamie shouted but was immediately cut off by a call from someone in the hall. In all his excitement and shouting, he had disturbed the rest of the household.

"Jamie, who are you talking too?" his mother's voice rang from outside his door.

The boy's eyes grew wide at being caught before looking at Jack who reassured him with a nod. "Uh... Jack Frost? "he tried with a nervous grin.

His mother's laugh echoed through the doors at what she assumed was a childish game. "Okay," she said before her footsteps faded down the hallway. Jamie let out an incredulous laugh shared with Jack.

Now that Jack had not only proven his but the rest of the Guardians existence, there was business to attend to. He needed Jamie's belief more than ever. Jack moved to the side of the bed and crouched down, holding on to the bed post for balance. Jamie's full attention was on Jack, never leaving him for a moment. It was one of the greatest feelings in the world. "Jamie, I need your help," he said with earnest.

"Of course!" Jamie shouted, giddy at the thought of helping Jack Frost. "Anything!"

Jack laughed lightly at the boys enthusiasm. "There's something I need you to do. I need you to help me restore belief in more kids. Can you do that for me?"

Jamie's eyes - if it was possible - grew even larger. "Definitely!"

XXXXX

With the back of Jamie's jacket firmly clutched in Jack's hand, the two leaped from the bedroom window and soared safely through the night air towards one of Jamie's friends. Jamie laughed with joy as the night wind rushed past his face, a sight any bystander would question their sanity if they saw. He spread his arms wide, feeling like a bird as they soared over the streets below.

"This one!" he shouted to Jack, pointing to a small, white, two story house below them. Jack lowered him and Jamie until they were eye level with one of the top floor windows. Inside was a small bedroom covered in soccer posters and jerseys. A young black boy with an unruly afro slept peacefully in the bed. Without any pretenses for being respectful of someone else's sleep, Jamie banged loudly on the window, violently pulling the kid out of his dreams.

"What the-?" the kid yelled, throwing his covers off in alarm. Jack mentally slapped himself for allowing Jamie to be so loud.

"Dude!" Jamie called out, tapping the window again and earning himself the most incredulous look from his friend.

Said dude flew out of his bed and to the window so fast, Jack was sure he'd never seen a kid move like that before. "Jamie? How are you doing that?" Obviously he couldn't see Jack.

"You'll never believe what happened to me!" Jamie shouted as 'Dude' opened the window. "It's Jack Frost!" Jamie nearly slipped from Jack's grip as he was moving so vigorously in all his excitement. "He's real! He's really real!"

Dude's mouth hung open for a second more before he jumped back startled. He squinted his eyes twice before a look of suspicion crossed his face. "Jamie, I don't know how or why, but now there's a random dude floating above you! And he's got really white hair."

"It's him! It's Jack Frost!" Jamie squealed, pointing enthusiastically above him.

This time it was of Jack's own accord for nearly dropping Jamie. "He can see me too?" he said with growing excitement. How his odds were changing for the best! Two kids could see him, two kids in one day! There was never a better feeling. Well, except when he was with Ellie.

"This is trippy, but I'm going to accept it," Dude said, nodding to himself for reassurance.

"Look dude, you've gotta help us! We have to get as many friends as we can! Like now!" Jamie said growing serious. "The whole world depends on it!" By now, Jack's arms were getting tired. Pretty soon Jamie was going to slip one way or another.

Dude furrowed his eyebrows in debate, then turned around, raced for his jacket hooked on his bedroom door, grabbed it and ran out of his room so fast, he was outside in seconds. "I'm in!" he called up to Jamie and Jack. In relief, Jack lowered himself and Jamie down. Once Jamie's feet were firmly planted on the ground, Jack shook his arms out vigorously.

"I think this just may work," Jack said as he stretched out his limbs. Dude stared open mouthed at Jack for a moment, only stopping when Jamie shook him out of it.

"Come on Tony, that's not cool," Jamie mumbled as he elbowed Dude- or Tony in the ribs. Jack however couldn't get enough of it.

"That's alright. I don't mind," Jack said, opening up his arms as if he were some great announcer at a circus. "I've been waiting for this for a very long time. So I don't mind at all."

Jamie smiled at Jack as Tony continued to stare. "Then we should get to Sara's house. She'll definitely help us!"

For the next half hour, Jack and Jamie rounded up as many friends as they could. They were six kids strong and heading down the street to find anyone else who could offer assistance when a loud banging noise echoed through the night air. In a moment of fear, Jack ordered the kids, who could now all see him, thank his lucky stars, to get behind him. "Get back!" he yelled, taking a fighting stance with his staff held out in defense. The sound grew louder, the children huddling closer together as it grew closer. But Jack would protect them with his life.

With one final clang, a large red object bounded around the corner of a street adjacent to them. In a moment all of Jack's worries vanished as Santa's sleigh skidded to a stop in front of them. A collective "oooooh" came from the children as their curiosity took over fear. Jack nearly laughed at the ridiculousness of it all.

From out of the sleigh popped Santa's head. "Jack? Oh Jack. It's so good to see you!" the big man bellowed in his thick accent. "We didn't know where you were!"

All the children had now dispersed, each one going in their own direction to inspect the sleigh or to stare at Santa. Out from behind Santa popped Tooth. Although this Tooth was a very different Tooth from the one Jack had last seen. She looked tired and weak and for once her feet were planted firmly on the ground.

Santa pushed himself out of the sleigh, relying heavily on his favourite sword for a cane. It appeared even he had taken a beating.

Jack said as he rushed to Santa's aid. "What happened?"

Santa who was now distracted by the six kids crowding around him, all asking different questions, had a sad smile on his face. "Oh Jack, you found kids who believe!"

Tooth had tears running down her petite features as one of the girls asked to touch her feathers. "Can you see me?" she asked weakly, and the girl with long pigtails nodded her head vigorously. "She can see me! Oh that's wonderful!" Tooth wrapped her tiny arms around the now speechless girl, enveloping her in a bear hug. "They haven't lost faith in us! How did you do it Jack? How can they see you too?"

But Jack held up his hands to stop the questions coming. "Wait, hold on. Firstly, what happened to you guys?"

Santa sighed heavily. "When all the children stopped believing in us, we lost our strength and power to defend them." All the children around them shouted out together how they would never stop believing. Jamie was particularly the loudest.

"But I never stopped believing!" he shouted, running up to Santa. "I always believed!" His large eyes pleaded for Santa to believe his words.

Santa gave him a warm smile, and slowly crouched down to his level, exhausted with the movement. "And you child, are the reason we are still here at all." Jamie's face broke into a toothy grin as Santa patted him kindly on the shoulder. Tooth, who had released the girl in pigtails, was trying very hard not to cry again.

"Hold on a sec," Jack said, peering over Santa's shoulder and into the sleigh. "Where's Bunnymund?"

At this Santa gave an awkward laugh and held up his hands innocently. "Well, you could say he's having to deal with a tiny problem."

As soon as the words left his mouth, a loud "Hey!" called out from the sleigh. "It's a temporary problem," Bunnymund argued, hoping out of the sleigh. Only his voice didn't come out of a powerful, six foot three rabbit but a small, fluffy, bunny. A collective "aw" came from the group of kids, all of them rushing to pet the fluffy animal who's mood didn't improve with it. Jack had to retain himself from laughing at Bunnymund's 'temporary problem'. "Alright, alright. Back off," Bunnymund said, giving each child a good glare. "Not like you've never seen a bunny before."

"See what I say? A tiny problem," Santa said, laughing at Bunnymund's expense. "But Jack, where is Ellie?"

Jack narrowed his eyes at big man, his words raising a red flag. "What do you mean 'where is Ellie?' Isn't she with you?"

Alarm spread through Jack's body as Santa said, "No. She never came back when she left. We assumed she would be here with you."

Tooth gripped Santa's arm in fear. "She's not with you Jack, is she?"

Everyone had turned their attention to him now. "No. The last time I saw her, she was portalling back to the North Pole."

Tooth shook her head at Jack's words, her face an open display of dismay. "We didn't get any portals Jack. Are you sure you saw her go though?"

A terrible sinking feeling dropped in his stomach. "No, I didn't."

XXXXX

Ellie watched as Jack soared into the sky, a blush creeping on to her face despite the cold night air. It was a wondrous feeling, to share such a intimate feeling with someone. And it felt even better to be wanted. For once someone had come to her, someone who wanted to protect her and wouldn't leave her. And who would have thought that someone would be the winter spirit Jack Frost. It was such a ridiculous notion Ellie had to laugh to herself.

And his touch. It was like a thousand volts of cold electricity bursting through her body.

Ellie lightly traced her bottom lip where Jack had done earlier. It seemed the two, an unlikely pair, completed each other. Like two jagged pieces that fit together perfectly. Ellie smiled even harder. Now she was just being cheesy, and it felt ridiculously good. Gripping the snow globe firmly in her hand, Ellie was about throw it to return to the North Pole to retrieve the others. But a voice stopped her.

"Oh Ellie, you've been a very bad girl."

Ellie turned around sharply to watch Pitch -in his typical fashion- step out from behind the shadows of a large tree. He was blocking the pathway that lead out to the city streets, cornering her into the pond. Ellie tensed immediately, regretting her lack of a bow and arrows. She looked quickly up into the night sky, mentally bidding Jack to come back for her.

"You weren't supposed to bring him back," Pitch said in a whiny voice, imitating a child. "And now you'll have to pay for it." His tone was almost bored now, as if what he was saying should have been obvious. Ellie gripped the snow globe tightly, ready to throw it behind her and make a quick escape when something pushed her down hard from behind. The snow globe rolled out of her hand, tumbling its way towards Pitch. He stopped it with his foot before it could roll away. "Naughty, naughty. You weren't thinking of escaping, now were you?" Stepping hard on the globe, the glass broke, taking any chances of escape with it. The figure of a black horse trotted out from behind Ellie, the culprit who had pushed her down with its nose. "That's my girl," Pitch said as the horse came up beside him. "You weren't going to let the bitch get away from daddy, now were you?" he crooned.

Ellie pushed herself up from the ground, thinking hard of how to get away, running all escape routes through her mind. "You can't win," she spat out weakly, stalling.

Pitch turned his attention away from the horse. "Oh my dear, I'm already halfway there. I'm just working on the problem of snuffing out all those bloody kids who still believe in the Guardians. Once they're gone, the Guardians will lose all their power. Completely defenceless and everything mine for the taking. I believe there's only one or two more children left and they're both in this very town! It was just luck you happened to be here. But I might as well kill two birds with one stone. It's always better to tie up loose ends when you can. And really, I should have dealt with you a long time ago. You and that bleeding Jack Frost of course. But you did make for a very fun game my dear. Unfortunately, this game needs to end." Pitch began advancing on Ellie, driving her backwards and on to the frozen pond.

Ellie was panicking now. There was nowhere to run, Pitch and his horse could move ten times faster than she ever could. Her only options now were either to get help or defend herself. Neither of them was looking very good. In a voice as loud as she could, Ellie called out. "JACK! JACK! COME BACK!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Pitch let out a retched laugh, finding her pleading hysterical. "Oh Ellie, Jack's a little busy right now, but can I take a message for you? I'll be sure to pass it on to him when I see him next."

Now back fully on the ice, Ellie called out Jack's name once more. "JACK!" But only the night air greeted her cries.

"It's a bit poetic, isn't it? You die here where the great Jack Frost died himself! I'll be sure to let him know you pleaded for him, begged for him to come save you, and he wasn't even there. That'll sure break him, won't it? He's alone again, you die alone yourself. The world is rid of two worthless souls. How beautiful it will be, the look on his face when he sees your dead body," Pitch snapped, stepping onto the ice in pursuit of Ellie.

She had one option left, self defense. She had no arrows, no weapons, absolutely nothing to protect herself with but she wouldn't go down without fighting for her last breath. She had been through too much to give up now. "You are poison to everything you touch. The Guardians will find a way to defeat you and you will have nothing, be nothing!" Ellie shouted. Pitch laughed again, getting a kick out of her desperate words. Concentrating hard, Ellie willed the green energy she had used before to appear now. But nothing came and she was running out of time. Giving up on the energy, Ellie took a fighting stance. "You will not break me."

Pitch tsked at her fight for survival. "My dear, you don't get a choice." Reaching into his long black robes, Pitch pulled out something long and slender. Sweat was starting to drip down Ellie's forehead as Pitch held out the long object. "You recognize this?" he asked, running his skeletal fingers along it. "It's the bow you first shot at one of my horses with. That was very rude of you. So, I decided to return the favour." Before Ellie could comprehend what he meant, Pitch waved his left hand in the air. Black dust rose out from his hand, forming into a slender back bow. "Fear Ellie, will always win. And it will be the last thing you ever feel."

Knocking the bow swiftly, Pitch let the arrow loose, the sound of a loud snap filling the air as the arrow hurdled its way towards Ellie. Before she had a chance to move, to bring herself to safety, the bow found its mark. It plunged deep into her right abdomen, sharp and violent. The pain was instant as she slid to her knees. She looked up slowly at Pitch who gave a small, satisfied smiled and vanished into the night, leaving her alone and broken on the ice.

**XXXX**

**Oooooh cliff hanger! **

**Well there you have it! 8 hours of blood and sweat haha. So please take the one minute or so to review! It's what makes me tick!**

**Au revoir! **


	12. A Flower in a Thorn Bush

**Oh kidlets! I think I need to address the elephant in the room. WHICH IS THE FACT I HAVE NOT UPDATED IN MONTHS! I know, I know… I am terrible and I FEEL terrible. I just got swept up in midterms and then finals but I have returned! Fear not! I present to you the conclusion to that nasty cliff hanger I left you with for so, so long! Hopefully this will satisfy your hunger! I also strongly encourage you to google the lyrics of the song of the Chapter after reading this chapter! It fits perfectly!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything but my own characters, everything else belongs to Dreamworks**

**Song of the Chapter: My Love - Sia**

**Chapter 12: A Flower in a Thorn Bush**

Jack raced through the streets, calling out Ellie's name with no response. His heart was pounding through his chest, blood rushing to his ears at the thought of anything happening to her, his Ellie. "ELLIE!" he called out frantically. "ELLIE!" But the night was silent and unforgiving. He raced back to the other Guardians and children all stationed silently on the street waiting for his call.

"Jack, where did you last see her?" Tooth asked, hovering beside Santa.

"I-I-It was the pond!" he yelled out, taking to the skies in frantic haste before anyone could stop him. He heard his name be called out behind him but ignored it. No force strong enough could stop him between his destinations, he would make sure of that.

XXXX

The night was very cold, but that seemed to be of little importance to Ellie right now. The wound in her stomach was growing with frightening intensity as she whimpered on the ice. Warm blood dripped from her abdomen, cooling off as it reached the frozen pond beneath her. Her body froze in a state of shock, the unbelievably that these were her final moments rippled through her with panic.

She thought hard on Pitch's last words to her, the truth becoming clearer by the second. She would die alone, as she had spent all her life alone.

As quickly as the shock had come it was wearing off, and soon Ellie's ribs were wracking with violent sobs. Sobs for the way this was ending, her life that seemed all too short now, and sobs for those she would leave behind. Images of the ones she had come to love flashed quickly through her mind, the last pausing on the image of Jack. How incredible it was that only a short time ago she had been wrapped securely in his arms. Now all that remained of him in her parting moments was the cold night air and the frozen pond beneath her.

Ellie tried to control her breathing, calling on every ounce of strength she had left, determined she would be strong for him and the other Guardians. Pitch may have broken her body, but her spirit would remain strong. Or at least try too. That would be her final fight against him.

Ellie counted backwards from ten out loud, her voice heavy with labor. Each word sent a shock of pain through her body as she became more aware of her injury. The arrow, which protruded from her stomach, was lodged deep. She fumbled for it weakly and cried out when her hand knocked into it. She held her fist up to her mouth and moaned into it, new tears escaping her eyes. Regaining her control she counted back from ten again, willing her breathing to slow down once more. With a shaky hand, Ellie found the arrow using more caution. She grabbed the shaft with her right hand and using her remaining strength broke it close to her body. She cried out once more, this time biting her tongue hard enough to draw blood. She threw that broken half of the arrow down violently on the ice, hating the thing with every fiber of her being, wishing she could yell at it, scream at it, blame it for the irreparable damage it had caused. But for now she could only stare at it with devastated eyes.

She felt better knowing she had broken the thing that had broken her, and knew that whoever found her body would have a less terrible sight to deal with. The thought threatened to send her over in hysterics as she considered her fragile mortality. She had only begun to truly live. Now it was time to say her goodbyes before death erased all of her memories and self.

She imagined what she would say to the others if they were here right now. She would tell Tooth how glad she was to have had such a wonderful friend like her and that the memories of children were truly a beautiful thing. She would tell Bunnymund that she had never met a rabbit with such an attitude but that that's what made him so annoyingly endearing. She would give Santa the biggest bear hung she was possible of and tell him how she could never be more grateful to anyone for taking her in. Finally she would tell Jack not to worry and that she would be reunited with her family soon. She would remind him that he was never truly alone and that there was always someone who believed in him; that she had always believed in him.

Ellie bid these thoughts with all her will to reach the others so that they knew she thought of them in her final moments. She wished they would know that they gave her strength in her time of need and that her love for them was pure and true.

Ellie smiled weakly with their faces in her mind, beginning to drift in and out of consciousness.

XXXX

Jack swore violently as he flew towards the pond, his heart beating fiercely in his chest. He was already imagining everything he would do to Pitch if he had hurt Ellie. Sevenfold would be the pain he would cause that black, slimy bastard. The pond came into view then, much to slowly for Jack though. And as soon as he saw it, his heart fell through his chest. "NO!" he screamed.

The pond was ever the same; peaceful in the serene way Jack was so used to, except for the sight of Ellie. She lay in its center, like a rag doll someone had forgotten on the ice. Jack propelled himself the rest of the way, landing right in front of her on the ice and falling to his knees at her sight. "Oh Ellie, oh Ellie. Oh god. What have I done?" he cried aloud. Jack crawled the rest of the way towards her head. Her eyes were closed, her breathing shallow, a pool of blood surrounding her midsection, dark and lustrous in the moonlight. He willed for the blood to return to her body, for the wound where a broken arrow protruded to heal itself, and for Ellie to wake up as if nothing had happened. But his will was not a cure and the blood remained spread out like a sick reminder.

Jack's hands shook violently as the pulled Ellie on to his lap. She whimpered a little, her eyes opening with effort. Jack held his breath before letting it go and stroked her hair softly. "Ellie. Ellie. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."

Ellie took in a shallow breath and locked her eyes with Jack's. "Jack - I... this isn't your fault. Please don't think that." She took another labored breath, finding strength in his presence and wanting to get out all she could. All she could get out before death took her into to an eternal sleep. "Thank you so much... I finally lived when I was with you. And I haven't since my family left me, but you gave me a second life. Don't ever forget that Jack. I finally lived again. I had a reason too." Ellie coughed violently then, blood splattering from her mouth and onto Jack's sleeve. Tears glistened in her eyes, threatening to fall. "I finally had a reason too," she repeated.

Jack lowered his head and placed a delicate kiss on her forehead, slow tears tracing his cheeks and turning to ice as they fell. "I'll never forget, Ellie. I promise you that."

Ellie smiled weakly and closed her eyes, as if finally having said all that she needed to say and was now free to die in peace. Jack wanted to tell her not to, that if she closed her eyes she was one step closer to leaving him and that was unbearable. "Thank you Jack."

Ellie took another shallow breath, her final one and then her body relaxed.

Jack could almost pretend she was sleeping, desperately wanted to, but the horror was too great. "Ellie," he whispered, as if calling her name would bring her back to him. "Ellie, don't go," he said again with greater force, his voice hoarse with grief. "Ellie!" he called. But her body remained still. "Oh god!" Jack moaned, every grief escaping in his cries. "Oh god!"

He clutched her body more tightly to him, trying to come to terms with her death. He prayed to every god and deity to help. To the universe and all the saints he could think of. "Anyone!" Jack cried aloud to the dark sky. "Please! Someone bring her back!"

But the night was silent.

Jack looked back upon Ellie and kissed her forehead one last time, letting his final tears fall. "I'll never forget," he whispered into the night, knowing no one would hear his promise.

XXXX

"Jack!" someone called his name from afar. "Jack!"

Jack looked up slowly; when the tears had halted so had any other emotion. It seemed all the grief and sorrow had been replaced with a deafening numbness. The world in front of him lost of its colour somehow. Every sound muffled and taste made bitter. It was the first real loss he had in 300 years and his coping ability was unpracticed. How could you cope when you didn't know how, when you never had to before?

"Jack!" the voice screamed louder, coming into sharp focus, the first real thing to pull him out of his daze in the last five minutes.

Tooth buzzed forward with great haste, the others coming behind her. "Oh Jack! Oh no!" Tooth choked up upon seeing Ellie's body. She still lay in Jack's arms, unmoving in her oblivion. "North! Take the children away!" she yelled quickly behind her. Jack noticed the sounds of distress coming from behind Santa, but the big man had the children ushered out of the area before they could see what had happened.

Bunnymund followed close behind Tooth, his head hanging low and curses escaping his mouth. He stood on the other side of Ellie's body, a giant paw over his heart in pain and remembrance. Tooth cried openly as Jack had done, coming up beside him to lean against him, to hug him and to comfort him. Something he couldn't do for himself. After a few moments Santa joined them, his voice the loudest of them all.

"How could a man do this!" he yelled in a roar. But Jack was no fool and could see the tears threatening to fall. "This is cruel! She was just a girl!" he cried out, crumbling to his knees beside Bunnymund and joining his cries with Tooth. "She did not deserve this. She deserved better," he said between sobs, anger seeping through in his words.

The four of them remained there in silence then, each trying to say goodbye in their own way.

After what seemed like eternity Tooth shook Jack's shoulder. The fairy still had tears escaping her eyes but Jack could tell she was trying her best to hold it in. "We have to go Jack. We can't just stay out here in the open. It's not safe," she said weakly. "We have to put her to rest somewhere."

Both Bunnymund and Santa were standing now, their faces set with the darkest of expressions. "She is right Jack," Santa spoke quietly. "We will find somewhere nice to put her. Someplace beautiful; where she can be in peace."

Jack nodded slowly and gently moved Ellie off his lap. "She was a flower in a thorn bush," he said quietly. "She had every reason to be bitter and angry but she wasn't. She was strong and beautiful and loyal. She deserves the very best." Jack stood up then and watched as the silver reflection of the moon danced upon her still face; a very bright reflection of the moon. Almost too bright.

Jack turned his face up to the night sky where the moon, which had been only a quarter full, was now at it's fullest. The beauty of it nearly stole his breath away as it's light grew in intensity around Ellie. The entire world seemed to stop. The air had ceased to move. No sounds were made and all the coldness of the world was gone. Very slowly the blood seeped around Ellie began to disappear, as if the moon could will such a thing. And in its place, small tiny flowers, a variety of kind, popped up from the ice. It was incredible and incredulous at the same time, each one of the flowers a vibrant colour, so full of life. And as the last flower grew, a delicate white lily, a sudden gust of wind lifted the flower up and let it fall just above Ellie's heart.

That was when he heard it. The sound of her breath.

The air, which had once seemed so stiff and cold now had a new flavour to it as her breath deepened. It was warm and smelt of flowers, a delightful change to the mustiness of death. A warm breeze had surrounded them all now, bringing a feeling of calmness and reassurance with each breath Ellie took. It was so contrasting to what Jack had been feeling before; he had to remind himself to let out all the tension he had been keeping in. This was his prayer being answered.

After a few more moments, Ellie's eyes opened slowly.

At first they were unfocused, and Jack leaned forward, eager to greet her. Then her vision focused, and that was when he noticed the change. Where once her eyes had been a sharp and intelligent light brown, they now shone with a clear and intense green. Her lips also seemed pinker; her hair a more brilliant red then it had ever been before. The change must have been quick, for he hadn't noticed it. But here she was, Ellie. Ellie, who had fought all her life. Ellie who had saved him in his darkest moment. Ellie who had lost her own life to a terrible man. But she had returned, all thanks to the Man on the Moon. Just as Jack had done 300 years ago himself.

Jack took a couple steps toward her and crouched on his knees. He extended his hand out to Ellie who had propped herself up on her elbows, a look of confusion and distress upon her face. She looked quickly at Jack's hand, moving her gaze up along his arm until landing on his face. For a moment he feared she had forgotten him, as he had forgotten everything every thing when he was brought back.

"Jack?" she whispered hoarsely to his relief.

"I'm here," he said, putting all the strength into his words. "I'm here Ellie."

She looked up quickly around her, her eyes connecting with everyone around them, but the fear would not leave her gaze. "Jack... I was so scared," she whispered quickly and grabbed onto his arm, pulling him into a tight embrace. "It was so dark and I couldn't see. It was like I was supposed to go somewhere but I didn't know how to get there or even if I could. And I knew I was dead, Jack. I knew it but I also knew I wasn't done. The Man on the Moon wasn't finished with me yet. And he called to me Jack, He was the only light in the darkness and I followed him. And he brought me back. He brought me back and gave me a new name." Her eyes were stinging with tears, but Jack could tell they were not tears of fear anymore. They were tears of relief and tension all at once. "He called me Ellie Primavera. Or Ellie Vera for short. He said it suited me."

Jack drew back from Ellie then, a smile so wide on his face he could feel his cheeks hurting already. Ellie's eyes searched his, as if needing his consent. Jack tugged lightly at a strand of Ellie's hair. The bright red shone radiantly despite the dim light of the moon. "And Ellie Vera suits you perfectly."

Ellie let out a breath she had been holding in as Jack leaned forward to kiss her tenderly on the forehead. "Thank you," she said so quietly only he could hear.

Jack then took this as a cue to stand back and help her up. She stood awkwardly at first, like a baby dear walking for the first time, and took a small step forward. That was when Santa, Bunnymund and Tooth assaulted her. Each one was trying to get a hug from her, all speaking over one another in their joy and gratitude. It was slightly chaotic but Ellie held her own, answering each of them to the best of her ability while still trying to listen to the others. It was a grand sight to Jack's eyes; one he wouldn't trade for the world.

After the three Guardians had had their time to welcome Ellie back, they separated allowing the girl to breathe. She stood tall and proud, ready to take on the next adversary after she had been knocked down. Her eyes were sharp, her body tense with anticipation. On the ground behind her lay her bow; in the place where she had dropped it. It too was buzzing with anticipation. Ellie -as if sensing the bow rather than seeing it- turned around. She picked it up gingerly before tightening her grip and turning back to face Jack. It was time for war and Ellie would get her revenge.

Jack smiled the slightest of smiles. This is what Ellie was meant to look like. This was her as her true natural self. All flowers aside, she was a warrior. She had always been one and now she truly looked like it.

"So?" Jack said, beginning to feel more himself again, more playful. "How do you feel?"

Ellie bit her lip in consideration. "Different."

"How so?"

"A good different. I feel stronger. More connected to the things around me. As if the trees and plants are actually talking to me."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "So you're a hippie now?"

Ellie snorted most unladylike. "Oh yeah. I've got revenge on my mind and its probably going to get bloody, but I'm going to retain my tree-hugging, animal-loving, peace-making persona. That's definitely how things are gonna go down."

Jack laughed at that. Everyone else giggled except for Bunnymund who just rolled his eyes. "You have quite the can-do-attitude for someone who just died and came back to life," Jack observed, crossing his arms in a mock sternness. How amazing it was to be joking again with her, despite the severity of the situation.

"Well... I don't see the point of moping around anymore. I've been given a second chance and might as well enjoy it. Plus I'm going to kick some ass while I'm at it. You are most welcome to join me."

"I think something can be arranged," Jack considered. It felt good but still slightly wrong for Jack to joke about something so serious, even for him. But if Ellie was the going along with it, why not? "After you," he said and held out an arm to let her pass.

But Ellie didn't move right away. In fact, she turned the opposite direction to face the others. "Firstly I wanted to say thank you, to all of you. Those last moments were the scariest moments of my life. But the strength you all have given me... if it wasn't for that, I would have been terrified and alone. So thank you. Thank you for everything. And I want you to know that I fought for you and will continue to do so till the very end." It seemed her words made everyone speechless. It was both a reminder of her grim death and of the beauty of love and the strength that it can give a person.

"Well let's hope it doesn't come to that again," Bunnymund finally said, breaking the moment. "Let's just worry about how we're going to kick Pitch's ass to a place where he can't return."

Santa nodded vigorously. "All the way to Timbuktu," he yelled, throwing a fist up in the air.

"Sounds good to me," Tooth said, rubbing her hands to keep them warm in the frigid night.

Ellie finally turned around to face Jack. "You lead the way," she said with every bit of confidence. "We're right behind you."

Jack smiled wickedly. "And this time, we're going to win."

**XXXX**

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